
Class 
Book.. 



J > 



fopigM . 



CQMRIGHT DEPOSm 



7//£ YoupiG Lady's Private Counselor. 



U^ 



iTHB 



Care of Mind.#Body 



-BY 



MELVILLE 0. KEITH. 



A book designed for young ladies, to aid them in 

acquiring a life of purity, intellectual culture, 

bodily strength and freedom from many 

of the ills and annoyances of life that 

custom has placed on the sex. 



STUDIES FOR YOUNG LADIES ON SUBJECTS CON- 
CERNING THEMSELVES. 



BY iM-A-NY HUE O T H E R, S . 



PREPARED AND COMPILED BY 



MELVILLE C. KEITH, M. D 



MINNEAPOLIS, MINN.: 

BUCKEYE PUBLISHING COMPANY. 

1890. 







Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1890, by 

MELVILLE C. KEITH, 
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



PREFACE. 



The favorable reception of "Seven Studies for 
Young Men, " and an often inquiry for a corresponding 
work for the girls, first brought out a desire for the 
present book. 

When his two daughters made their visit to the 
Normal School there was a desire to place something in 
their hands that could assist them in the care of their 
bodies. 

A PRIVATE MENTOR. 

Although there ■ are numerous works for girls, none 
on certain subjects are plain enough to certain minds. 
The book has been written, therefore, as if the writer 
has been speaking to his own girls, and not with the 
idea of lecturing or of speaking a piece. The style is 
not to be chosen for its bluntness, but the book can be 
taken as a desire to do good to those whom he will 
never see. 

The idea of different articles from different pens of 
ladies who have been successful and happy mothers, 
and having these articles embodied in the work, was an 
after thought, and has delayed the appearance of the 
work in book form for some time. But to those who 
believe such messages are sent, this will not be an ob- 
jection but a help, when they receive the book. 

These essays have been unchanged. Instead of giv- 
ing their names, the state they are from is signed at 
the bottom of their essay. Noble and valuable thoughts 
will be found in these articles. Every article is from 
a mother of girls, and is written to girls. 

As for the style, it is a book for the closet and for 
thought, and is strictly the thoughts of a parent for 
the child, with the best interests of the child at heart. 

The Author. 



!|f ^wm% Jbfrtj $ JVttmk §mm$^fa 



CHAPTER I. 



THE TWO NATURES. 



It is evident that there are in eveiy person two distinct and 
separate natures and that, in man}' instances, these natures 
are most strangely at war. 

They alone are happy who understand the relation of these 
two natures to the control of the mind and body. 

We know this of ourselves without asking any one about 
it. 

Our desires are not the same at one time as they are at 
another time, yet we think we are the same person at one 
time that we are at another time. 

These contrary conditions may be because we may be un- 
der one influence or nature at one time, and under the other 
nature at another time. 

We shall call these two natures: 

1. The bodily. 

2. The spiritual. 

The bodily nature demands man}' things which are not 
good or expedient for the body to possess. There are ap- 
petites and desires which, if gratified, will bring on a penalty, 
and this penalty will be death. 

The bodily nature is of a self-limited existence. 

We may be able by proper methods to make this bodily 
life longer or shorter; stronger or weaker; easy or uneasy; 
healthy or sick; pleasant or unpleasant. 

The bodily nature demands food, clothinff, shelter and air. 



The Two Natures. 



The spiritual nature also demands sustenance, clothing and 
growth. 

Many persons have never become acquainted with their 
spiritual nature, and others have never taken the trouble to 
have their spiritual nature born or nurtured. Others have 
their spiritual nature so warped and dried up that we can 
hardly tell whether they have any spiritual nature or not. 

The ones who are safe in this life are those who are ac- 
quainted with both of their natures and have their bodily nature 
fully under the control of the mind or this spiritual nature. 

The most unhappy of all persons are those who have never 
had their spiritual nature born and are under the control of 
their bodily nature. Such persons are materialists, of the 
earth, earthy. 

These persons are the ones who are constantly desiring 
something they have not. They desire some article of diet, 
or some article of dress, or to go somewhere, or to hear 
something, or, in short, to gratify some of their bodily nat- 
ure, while the}' do not know that they have a spiritual nat- 
ure which is capable of enjoying life a thousand-fold more 
happily and more continuously than the bodily nature can 
ever become capable of enjoyment. 

Persons who have not allowed their spiritual nature to 
grow, or who have neglected to furnish their spiritual nat- 
ure with food and growth are those who are constantly seek- 
ing something to feed themselves with and do not know what 
is the matter with them. 

We find these spiritually starved natures in all classes and 
in all the walks of life. They are the theatre goers; the 
gamblers; the wine drinkers; the card players; and the gossips 
of the neighborhoods. They are the wanters of your ac- 
quaintance, the unfortunates of the world. They would 
rather have thirty pieces of silver to jingle than a friend. 

The ones who, under any circumstances, are those whom 
you consider happy are those who have conquered the bodily 
nature and are governed by their mental or spiritual nature. 

The bodily nature is still desiring some other thing just 
beyond it, never satisfied. 



The Two Natures. 



As this book is to deal principally with the bodily nature, 
we may profitably examine the double natures at this time 
and state that, without this understanding, happiness or con- 
tentment is impossible. 

The Spiritual. — It is quite certain that there is no hap- 
piness for the spiritual nature in the enjoj'ment of the body. 

The happiness and contentment of the spiritual must come 
from the growth and enjoyment of the spiritual. 

We must have something tangible for the spirit to take 
hold of and to rest in. Not that the body should be neglected, 
but the spirit is of more importance. The spiritual is not 
born when the body is, but at some period after. 

When we are " horn again " very few can positively tell. 
But after the spirit is once born, there is a desire for the 
spirit to constantly grow. The free spirit desires to know 
more of spiritual things and we are as constantly finding 
some new thing for the spirit to feed upon. 

The true food for the spirit is the Word of God. This food 
has been provided for us to feed upon in advance, just as 
the coal and oil for our heat and light are found in the earth 
where it had been placed by the Maker of the earth thousands 
of years ago. 

This food for the spirit is all found in the Bible and is not 
found anywhere else, but the means of digesting this pre- 
pared food is in the spirit which is in harmony with the 
Spirit of God, which is called the Holy Spirit. 

These two acquaintances are sufficient to feed the spirit of 
man as long as the man lives. All the supplies of spiritual 
food are drawn from these two sources. We may be nour- 
ished and feasted by admiring the sublimities of nature or 
in contemplating the wondrous works of God — His mount- 
ains, valleys, oceans and landscapes, but the true supply of 
spiritual food can come from no other source than the Word 
of God and the Holy Spirit. 

When we have once accepted this we shall never cease to 
grow daily. We shall be kept. The Lord will hold us in 
His hand. We shall be His children. Our spiritual nature 
will be fed from him day by day. The bodily nature will be 



The Two Natures. 



in abe} T ance. We shall be free from the desires of this 
world. No one can taunt us or worry us about the affairs of 
this world, because the affairs of this life will be beneath our 
care. What we may need we shall have without our having 
to fight for it or without our having to worry about it. 

This condition is what the Lord meant when he said: 
" Seek first the kingdom of God." If we have our spiritual 
natures fed we will be found in the kingdom of God. We 
shall be daily dependent on the Holy Spirit and the Bible for 
our supply of daily food, and we shall not have to be very 
anxious to know where the next supply is coming from, be- 
cause we shall know that the Spirit and the Book will pro- 
vide. This truth is of the very first importance. We must 
have our spiritual natures fed. They must be fed from the 
Word of God. We can not find the Word of God out of 
the Bible. With the Bible comes the Holy Spirit. With 
these two supplies we shall have an abundance of food 
and as constantly grow. We shall have all our spiritual 
natures in good order and in the way of life. As children, 
we shall grow up in the light of "Our Father, God." 

If we do not have these spiritual natures of ours in good 
condition, no matter what else we may have, we shall be un- 
happy and miserable. Unless we have these spiritual natures 
born and fed and growing, we can not understand the truths 
of life when we see them. 

The first advice we would give, is to settle your mind on this 
great subject and have your spiritual nature resting on the 
great God, ' ' the Maker of Heaven and earth and all that 
in them is," your Maker and mine. 

You may think this is not ' < counsel. " It is. You can not 
keep anything in this life unless you have some spot to place 
away what you may get. There has to be some place to 
place your earthly possessions. 

You can have no room for anything spiritual in your head 
or in your body- unless you have your spiritual nature in a 
receptive condition. You do not have to wait a moment. 
Follow the teachings of the Master and go into your closet, 
shut the door and pray to the Father who is in secret and 



The Two Natures. 



He shall reward you openly. This is a spiritual act, forcing 
the body to become obedient. Or, you can simply look and 
satisfy the spiritual nature, 

If you are not in the habit of praying, you have to com- 
mence and you do not need any one to tell 3*011 that a prayer 
is asking of God something you may wish. This desire 
to be obedient to God is born of 3'our spiritual nature. 
Your bodily nature desires to eat, sleep, and grow fat. God 
is your Father. He is your Maker. He is your Preserver. 
And no matter how young or how old you may be, God is 
now ready to hear your petitions and as ready to answer them. 
He made you and formed these two natures. He asks obe- 
dience from you, as His child. The organizations of man are 
not needed. You may think so. But God and the spirit 
are not found in man's material societies. 

There is a great deal of this supposed need of a church 
to join. But we tell you that the great majority of 
the societies and organizations are not helps to holy living, 
but are hindrances. We tell you more. If you have a de- 
sire to live in the best manner to produce the best results for 
your spiritual nature you would best keep away from these ma- 
terial organizations, societies and bands, and the people who 
are wedded to the material and earthly brotherhoods or sister- 
hoods. We are most sorry to tell you this. We feel that 
we are antagonizing many good and true friends. But we 
know that we are right. The so-called societies and bands 
of human fabrication are not beneficial to your spiritual life. 
The people who are in those societies are not truthful, and 
too many of them (but we do not say all of them) have 
joined those societies for the purpose of being helped in 
their bodily and material life. We acknowledge that help is 
needed. But we tell you that the help one gets from the 
common society is not the help that helps. The help which 
is needed is from the power of the Hoty Spirit, and is not to 
be received from the association of the people who frequent 
the societies and weekl}- gatherings of the multitudes who go 
to obtain the same thing. They lack this help of themselves, 
and, as thej' do not have it, the}' certainly can not and do not 



10 The Two Natures. 



give it to you. They can not help your spiritual nature. 
The only way by which you can be helped in this gaining of 
the Spirit, is to read the Bible and pray to God. We might 
tell you that some holy men or holy women could help you, 
but they can not and it is not of any use to deceive you 
when this hand shall be dust. 

There is no real help outside of the Bible and the answers 
to your prayers. This is the fact and the sooner you realize 
this the sooner you will educate your spiritual nature. You 
may imagine that some scapula, some image, some prayer to 
some saint, or to the deity who may be supposed to preside 
over your nativity, or a prayer to the Virgin, will aid you 
in your endeavors to lead a holy life. But this is all a mis- 
take. These saints are all dead and the}' can not help you. 
Christ is our only authority for the way to act. He said: 

"But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thine inner 
chamber, and having shut the door, pray to tlry Father which 
is in secret, and tlry Father which seeth in secret shall re- 
compense thee. " 

We think we are correct in saying when you have done 
this and when you have learned to depend wholly on the 
Father for assistance, you will acknowledge that all the 
societies made by men can not help you. 

There are some things which we hesitate to say, and yet we 
know for your own good you would better learn them now 
than by and by when the tempter comes. 

Many of your worst temptations will be from the so-called 
churches. You will grow worldly and selfish by thinking 
that the churches and church people are what 3-011 should be 
generous to. 

You should be generous to the entire world. Every per- 
son in this world who is one of God's children claims your 
help. If you are once tied to a society, that society will be the 
boundary of your life. If you do not ally yourself with 
an}- human organization, . but depend wholly on the Lord 
Jesus, you will be in the church — although you will not be- 
long to an}' human organization. 

This is our experience. The society of man does not help 



The Two Natures. 



11 



3*ou but develops the earthly, and they do your spiri ual nat- 
ure hurt. These societies must have money; must have 
your labor; the earnings of your hands; the toil of your 
bod}'. You must dress. Ten thousand things come up that 
lower your standard of living to the Master. And we think 
it is best to keep from all entanglements with all human so- 
cieties, all human bands, as it is known to be a human so- 
ciety, and the work of human hands. Do not allow the 
spiritual to depend on earthly charit}' for food. Go to God. 

Perhaps you are a church person, so-called. If you are 
really desirous of serving God 3*011 should lose no time in 
seeing " whether the body of men known as the human 
churches are correct. 

Take one single point. The traditions of this so-called 
church tell and teach 3*011 to praj to the Virgin Mary. 

At the same time the church professes to believe on the 
Holy Bible. Very well. 

Take 3 r our Catholic Bible (there is no material difference 
in the Bibles — the Spirit of God is with the reading of 
either of them) and turn to the first epistle of Paul to the 
Thessalonians, fourth chapter, and commence at the thir- 
teenth verse, and read to the end of the chapter. 

Here 3*011 find that the good are "asleep in Jesus." 

The3* are "dead in Christ," and "shall rise first." When 
shall the3* rise? 

You will see that the3* are going to " rise " when the 
"Lord shall descend from Heaven with a shout." 

The3 T are not 3 T et risen. If the3* are not 3*et risen WI13' should 
you pray to them? Think this over carefully and with 
pikers to God and prayers to Christ, and ask God to 
help 3*011. 

Let me tell 3*011, my Catholic reader, that one of the 
reasons of your unhappiness and of your not having answers 
to your prayers, is because 3*011 do not pray according to the 
teachings of 3*0111' Lord and Master, Christ. All of your 
prayers to the Virgin are of no value, and you have now, al- 
though you may not read another word, a full reason why 3*011 
should look into the Bible and see for 3*0111* own self whether 



12 The Two Natures. 

your so-called church is of God or is it of man. We tell 
you, if you desire to find God, and if you desire to have 
some help for your spiritual nature, you should see that you 
go to the only place where there is an}' help, and that place is 
the Bible, and to the closet as taught by Jesus, and in 
sincere prayer to God. All your prayers to the Virgin are 
an abomination to God and are a part of the idolatrous 
system known as the Roman church. We tell you still 
more. If there are any of the human organizations 
which are under more misfortune than an}' other, we can 
show you that the members of the Roman Catholic church 
are the ones. 

The time has come which has been looked for, when God 
cries out: " Come out of her my people.'" And we tell you 
without any hope of reward or of fear, that the time is here 
when the good people of all denominations are coming out of 
the churches and belonging alone to the church of God and 
wholly trusting to the saving grace of the Holy Spirit, which 
does not have to have any human organization to assist it in 
its work. No earthly organization can help your spiritual 
nature. God can alone satisfy and provide for you. 

So we go back to our first point, — that if you desire to help 
your spiritual nature you must depend on two sources, and 
those two sources are the Bible and the Holy Spirit. Let all 
the human societies alone. 

When you are free from these societies you are ready to 
depend on the Spirit of God. As long as you are in these 
human societies you are looking to them for a support which 
they will never give. Your spiritual nature will be always 
dwarfed as long as you are with and depending upon them. 
Take the Bible as the man of your counsel and depend on 
the Holy Spirit for your sole guidance. 

When you do this you must not think that all is to be 
smooth sailing into paths of peace. A child is born in a 
moment, but it does not grow to be a man in a moment. 
You will not grow to be strong in a moment. You have 
first to learn to go to God. Then God will commence to 
teach you His way. He has a way in this world. What- 






The Two Natures. 



i: 



ever may be bad in }'our path, go directly to G-od with it. 
Take everything which you think is out of your power to do 
or to overcome, to the throne. 

Ask God in all of the affairs of your daify life to help and 
guide you and } T our steps. Whatever is in your way to do, 
and to do good, do it, but at the same time do not do any- 
thing without asking God to help you in the doing of that 
thing, no matter how humble and how small it may appear. 

Do not forget that it is all between you and the Spirit of 
Grod whether you will become a child of God. You must go 
to God. But when you once go to God he does not leave 
you in -the dark. His Spirit comes down and teaches you 
what to do. You can not know all of God's purposes at 
once. Little by little He will show you what is best for }~ou 
to do in His way. He will educate and guide you. Christ 
said He would send the Comforter, and either the Comforter 
has come or He has not. If Christ told the truth, then the 
Comforter is here and waiting to help you. The Comforter 
is come. All the ills of this life will appear very small in 
this life if you are a child of God. And }-ou may be assured 
that if anything happens to you that there is some object in 
the thing happening, and take it as from the Father. Do 
not worry and fret about the spiritual part of existence if 
you have done all in your power to help yourself. The sal- 
vation of the spiritual part is the work of God, and He is 
not likely to make any mistake about the work which is es- 
pecially His. 

If you have taken all the care of the spirit you know how, 
it is not worth while to be worried about the future of that 
spirit. Your duty is to be sure you are right here and not 
worry about being right hereafter. That future is the pro- 
vision of God and you will find that He is alone the One who 
will take care of that future. If the mind worries } t ou after 
.you have done all in your power to keep the mind easy, ask 
yourself if there is not something which is wrong with the 
body. Your liver may be bad and in such a case it is nat- 
ural that there should be some gloomy thoughts. We can 
know when we are right mentally, because the mind is lioht 



14 The Two Nature; 



and buoyant. And we can know when we are right bodily 
when we feel that there is no pain or ache or weakness. 

The object of this book is to aid you in preserving your 
bodily health and to assist 3-011 in taking care of that body. 
The knowledge which is in this book is of no value to you 
until } t ou have that knowledge in your head and can use the 
knowledge for 3-our own self. 

You will know whether the knowledge is true or not by 
the time 3'ou have tried it. You can tell whether it is new 
to } T ou or not. All the knowledge concerning 3-our bod3^ 
could not be put in this book, but if 3 t ou desire to get 
knowledge, there will be an opportune to get that knowl- 
edge which is of use to 3^011. 

The spiritual nature is alone fed on spiritual things and 
not on the food of the body. The food of the bod3 T will not 
feed or edify the needs of the spiritual nature, and when one 
thinks or fancies that the affairs of this life can make the 
spiritual nature satisfied, there is made one of the grandest 
mistakes of life. We can not do it. The moment we are 
satisfied with the things of this life and with the affairs of 
this world, and we are satisfied with the goods of this earthly 
existence, we are spiritualty starved. The spiritual nature is 
in the condition of a hungry child. It lacks food. To feed 
the spiritual nature there has to be food appropriate to the 
nature. This food is alone prepared b3 T the One who made 
us, and is as abundant as the bodily food is. Eveiywhere 
there is this spiritual food, if we can take it and assimilate it. 
But we can never assimilate the food which is around us un- 
til we are in a condition to take this food from the rough 
places where it may be found. The person who thinks of 
dinner as the main thing of the da3 T will never see any beaiuty 
in the clouds or the sunshine. The person who is thinking 
how the dress is trailing along the street is not one who can 
contemplate the beauties of the stars. One who is after a 
dollar to buy bread is not the one who is contemplating the 
source of the Northern Lights. 

To have this spiritual life as perfect as it should be, we 
should live as close to the great God who made us, as we 



The Two Natures. 15 

know how. The gossiping and the tattling of the common 
herd should not find an entrance to our minds. We should 
shun those people who are ready to carry any of this earthly 
and foul-mouthed gossip. Shun all and every kind of idle 
words. Shun the companionship of those who are in the 
habit of telling those stories or repeating the tales which will 
make any person unhappy. 

"VVe think the best way to get this spiritual food is to go to 
the Bible and read until the Lord and the Word are as one to 
us, and we can see what is meant in the Word of God. 

The reading of the novels of the day is one of the 
methods by which we can starve the spiritual nature. The 
most of these stories are based on some love affair which is 
never true to life and which is always of the most material 
nature. It can not do us any good to read these things which 
are untrue and do not leave us as well fitted to battle against 
the world as we were before we read them. We have a false 
idea in our heads and this false idea is often what places us 
at a disadvantage in the battle for bread. 

The mind should be trained to the exact truth, and with 
such training there will not be any trouble in looking at the 
things of life so as to make the exact case as it stands and as 
soon as we can see the exact condition and the exact relation 
and the manner in which we stand to the rest of mankind, 
we shall be able to select our place and give to ourselves the 
food that is needed, to our spiritual natures, as well as the food 
to our bodily natures. Why should we become servants to 
someone else who is not as good as we are? We can take 
care of this body and elevate the spirit and mind at the 
same time. Perhaps the best example of taking the eyes 
from this world's affairs is to be found when Moses lifted up 
the serpent of brass and bade the bitten people to look to 
this image. They had to take off their eyes from the place 
where they had received the bite and gaze on something else. 
They must cease to dwell on the snakebite; they had to take 
the eyes from this place where the}' had received the bite, 
and turn them away from their material bodies. The 
very fact that they had to take their minds from the bite 



16 The Two Natures. 



and look to something else was enough to change their 
minds. As long as they were looking at the wound which 
they had received from the snake they could do nothing. 
But when they took their eyes from this wound and placed 
them on something which was placed there by someone else, 
then they were healed. 

So in the desire for a spiritual elevation. We have to 
take our minds from the contemplation of these earthly things 
and go to the spiritual throne and to * ' One who was lifted 
up " before we can get any relief from this earthly torture 
which comes to every one in the world at some time. 

While this work will deal with the bodily nature mostly, we 
say, at the outset, the spiritual nature is of far the most 
value and without the elevation of the spiritual above 
the material there will be no true happiness. Study 
how to have the spiritual nature in the best possible condi- 
tion and we think the best way is to have a sound mind in a 
sound body. Do not neglect either of these natures as you 
value your peace of mind and your happiness. 



CHAPTER II. 
WHY AM I A WOMAN? 

This question has been asked countless times, and we have 
never seen any satisfactory answer to it. 

The differences in the sex are accounted for in the follow- 
ing manner. When there is union between the parents di- 
rectly after the menstrual period, there will be a girl. If a 
period of six to fourteen days elapse, the offspring will be 
a male. 

This rule is asserted to hold good in all the mammalia. 

The body in its general make-up is precisely alike in both 
cases, except that, in. the case of the male, the scrotum 
descends outside the body and carries the testes down {or vice 
versa), and the organs enlarge under the influence of increase 
of nutrition. While in the female, the organs are retained 
in the body, the scrotum becoming the uterus and the testes 
the ovaries. The organs of the female have each counter- 
parts in the male. But this is the condition of sex only and 
it is evident that there is in the woman, a something that 
there is not in the male. 

We have been told that the female is the < ' weaker vessel, " 
but, in reality, if one examines the body and the habits, this 
should not be so. 

In nearly all the animals the female is as strong, as endur- 
ing and as long or longer lived. There is no reason why it 
should not be so in the human race. The facts are visible 
that the girl who is treated correctly, dressed properly, and 
has proper exercise, is as strong, robust and vigorous as the 
male. 

Still the equality of the attributes of the body does not 
prevent the fact that the woman possesses something differ- 
ent from the male, outside of the conditions of strength, 
vitality or long life. A something which renders her su- 
perior to the man as long as she has it, and inferior to the 
man when she has lost it, or when she has been robbed of it. 
B 17 



18 "Why am I a Woman? 

As I have never heard a name for this fact, and it is a fact 
that at once accounts for all the contrary things we see con- 
cerning the female sex, why at one time a woman is raised 
to the rank of a queen and a goddess, and at another time 
she is classed as a slave, we have decided to call it feminine 
power. 

We think, we assert, that every woman has this power 
born in her, and that she is the possessor of the power as 
much as she is the possessor of the reproductive organs. 

So long as she is in a certain state, the female is a queen, 
a ruler, a lovely being that controls the world and is favored 
directly from heaven. She has the power of heaven to create 
happiness around her. 

When once this power is gone, she is no longer a queen, 
but a " weaker vessel," a plaything, a slave, seemingly a 
misfortune to herself, a source of trouble and unhappiness. 
Understand, please, that this is a man writing (whose mother 
was a woman), a father, lover, husband, counselor, and that 
with no outlines to go before, we are stating a fact as it ap- 
pears to us and new to the world — a cause why woman as 
woman exists. 

We say the cause is, that God designed a superior, 
higher, better, purer life than man could naturally possess, 
and for this reason he made that superior, higher, better, 
purer being and gave her the same body reversed, retained, 
innate, and called it woman. 

A short space only will be taken up by the consideration 
of this fact, although it is of such vast importance and the 
proofs are so abundant that it would take a volume to do it 
justice, and to mention this series of facts as they are in 
history, and in the experience of every thoughtful person, 
man or woman. 

Throughout all nations and ages we have these queens ana 
superior creatures, and we have also a corresponding class of 
slaves. 

We read of the women of the Bible, the women of histoiy, 
and we see the women of to-day in the same two great classes. 

We assert that the same power, the same superior purity, 



Why am I a Woman ? 19 

the same instinctive excellence exists in the woman of to- 
day as has existed since the da} T s of Eve. She is the center, 
the loved, the life, the dependence, the happiness, content, 
peace and comfort of the world. 

Woman the queen ; the mother ; the controller of man's 
happiness. 

At the same moment she becomes a slave — a cruel-hearted 
monster, "afflicted with devils," a "weaker vessel," a bur- 
den, a hindrance, and likened to a "dog." 

Can such a series of facts exist (and they do exist and are 
easily recognized in any community) and yet we possess the 
key that tells us of the reason why ? 

We think so. 

As long as a woman is pure and virtuous she is endowed 
direct from heaven with this queenly power. She is, in her- 
self, the embodiment of some special aim and special grace ; 
some gift that Grod endows her, making her from above, 
purer, better and more broadly powerful over the worker, 
man, than any other being living. Men worship her. She 
is truly a queen because she rules. She orders or wishes. 
Men obey. 

At once, when she loses her virtue, or jdelds to passion or 
persuasion, arts or force, she loses this high estate and drops 
to be a beggar, a slave and a weaker body. The power is 
gone. The woman who yesterday was a queen is to-day i < a 
body of death." 

We say to every girl : No matter your station or your ac- 
quirements ; your poverty, your looks, your surroundings or 
your ancestors ; your color or your nationality ; no matter 
your deformit}^, your dress, j-our dirt, your snoes or your 
bonnet, or whether you have any ; no matter how low, how 
vile, how degraded, how meanly sprung you were, nor where 
you came from ; no matter all these — are you a woman ? 
God has created you a queen. You have power. The world 
is at your command. All that makes life enjoyable is yours 
to have, to take, to own, tj keep, to enjoy. You are a queen 
and have only to make your wishes known to have the world 
yours. Yes, more. You rise above this world and take 



20 Why am I a Woman? 

hold of hands in heaven, which bring you up out of all the 
low grovelings and heartaches of this world. Angels wait 
upon you. God looks upon you and smiles. You are a 
King's daughter and you wear a royal robe that angels have 
woven. Angels watch you and although ten thousands of 
devils — of poverty, illness, surroundings, relatives, weakness 
and want, cold and hunger, shall peck and taunt you, you 
shall overcome them all and breakfast with j r our Father, the 
King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. The world is yours. 
What any one has you may have. What any one enjoys is 
all yours. Keep your powers. 

You may say l c Oh, I am only a poor girl and haven't any 
power." But I tell you that is a mistake. You are a 
woman. You have this poicer. God gave it to you at the 
moment of conception. God never makes a mistake and as 
sure as He made you a woman, He put this power in you 
and only by your own act can you lose that power and re- 
duce yourself to be a beggar and a slave. 

You may say you are now a beggar and a siave. Very 
well. You are a King's daughter. Run away from where 
you are — get away from bondage — put the ocean between 
you and that master, and become free, rich, and take charge 
of your own house. 

All this may not be clear to you. 

We will try to make it clear. As long as a girl is virtuous, 
as long as she retains control of her body — so long as no one 
— not even herself — by thought or action — has control of 
the bod} T , or can stimulate or pander to her passions — just so 
long does the woman hold the power of the world and the 
direct favor of God. When the woman is married and is 
subject to her husband, she gives that power to the husband, 
in a measure. She is no longer the queen of the world, 
but she is the queen, mistress and ruler of one man — the 
worker — and the controller of one household — a home. Her 
home. His home. The woman owning, controlling, mak- 
ing, holding, keeping, building up the home. 

But once let the woman lose Her virtue, once let her become 
subject to passion, or the plaything of a man, or yield to her 



Why am I a Woman? 



own passion, and her power is gone. She is the weak vessel. 
She is a slave and beggary follows. She can no more lift 
herself back into her place in the universe as a superior 
being than she can take hold of the moon or grasp the stars. 
It is impossible. The woman who has once lost her virtue 
has lost her power, and she is in comparison to what she 
was an hour ago, a weaker vessel, a slave. 

With these assertions we now come to the answer of < ' Why 
am la woman 1 ?" 

Answer. Because God, in His wisdom, made me as a ves- 
sel of honor, to do his will. 

If you do His will, you are a specially gifted servant of the 
Most High. If you do not do it, you are a dishonored 
servant and an outcast from heaven and despised on earth. 

We think this is the answer to the question. A woman is 
superior if she is a true, virtuous woman. If she is not 
virtuous, she is fallen so low that nothing on the earth will 
do her reverence. 

How shall she keep this power? 

We reply that no woman is safe who does not have a com- 
panion stronger than earthly companions. And in our idea 
that daily and hourly companion is the Holy Spirit — the 
comforter. 

This companion is to be brought to dwell in you by read- 
ing the Bible and by prayer for the Spirit of God. This is 
a matter that is to be thought of more than can be written. 
It is a matter full of facts which are at your hand. If you 
are a woman you are a superior being. If you have lost 
your virtue, you have lost your superiority and are beneath 
the men. It may not be known, but it can be felt. Your 
presence; your body; your whole body, tells the story of 
3'our superiority or your fall. 

External appearance may assist to deceive the unthinking, 
but the inner sense, which is the true judgment, can not be 
misled by any outward show or any affected airs. Jewehy, 
clothes, accomplishments, relatives, can not weigh a hair for 
or against you. It is in and of yourself If } t ou are virtu- 
ous you are a power, a queen, a King's daughter and a com- 



22 Why am I a Woman? 

panion for one who is to come for you. In you are the 
germs of a future nation. Power is yours. Angels smile 
on you. Circumstances may dishearten but they can not con- 
quer or hurt you. 

The very fact tUafc you are a woman is the fact that God 
has a special work for you to do. You are blessed above all 
men. Only keep yourself a woman and do not allow 3 r our- 
self to become a piece of jewelry or a feather, a beggar or a 
slave. Remember that you are priceless. Mone} r could not 
make you, and it should not buy you Let nothing tempt 
you to forget that fact for one second. "I am a woman. " 
The grandest, most beautiful, most powerful and most per- 
fect piece of workmanship in the world is a woman. Fash- 
ioned by the special thought of Deity — a woman, the mother 
of earth Made a woman because of the special command 
of God in her behalf. 



CHAPTER III. 
BEING A WOMAN, WHAT CAN I DO? 

"Being a woman, what can I do?" 

Being a woman. 

We shall take a few observations before we tell you what 
are your possibilities. 

When a ship leaves the port the captain or commander of 
that vessel takes a departure from all the landmarks which 
are in sight. 

When he is leaving the port he will shape the course of his 
vessel towards the nearest place that he desires to go and 
that he will see (or sight), and then, if it has not been done 
before, he will set a watch. All the night there is someone 
at the wheel and someone on the lookout. Someone is 
awake constantly and someone is always guiding that ship by 
means of the helm. 

The captain or commander has a sextant and compass, and 
also in the cabin there is a chart showing the depth of the 
water, all the reefs and all the quicksands, and all the dis- 
tances to and from distant points. 

Being a woman, you have a more priceless vessel than all 
the vessels and all the cargoes which ever floated on the 
ocean, and you are of more priceless value than all the com- 
manders who ever strutted the decks of all the ships on the 
ocean. 

Let us take our observation and see how you stand and 
how you are fitted with the things of this life. 

Are you well? 

Health is a most priceless blessing, but it is not the most 
valuable of all blessings. 

Upon the condition of your health depends, in some man- 
ner, the choice of your pursuit. 

Are you educated? 

Education is of great value. 

If you are without a good English education, } r ou have a 

23 



24 Being a Woman, What Can I Do? 

much harder load to carry than if you could do all the sums 
in the arithmetic and write a neat hand. But the education 
can be acquired. It takes time and takes much trouble to 
get an education after one is twenty and over, but it can be 
clone, and you need not fret about this lack. 
D About 3 r our disposition, there is something to be said, but 
these attributes are soon remedied if lacking, as we shall 
soon see. 

Have you any inone}'? 

We hope not. 

If you have any ruoney you are liable to depend on that 
money and you will soon lose that little money to some 
sharper and so you will be worse off than you would have 
been if you had none. 

Have 3 T ou friends? 

If you have, discard the idea that any of your earthly 
friends are to be leaned upon. 

It is true you have a mother. She is truly your best friend. 
There is no one who would do more for you than your father. 
But on your going out into the world there are no friends 
who can help you but One. 

And here at this point you will take a look at your ship 
and see just how you do stand and place it down for your 
future reference and for } T our future guidance and encour- 
agement. 

The first thing you need is a friend who can help you to a 
situation and give you wisdom enough to keep it and strength 
to hold it. 

Being a woman, what can I do? 

This depends upon what kind of a friend 3*011 have. 

In one of the Arabian Nights' stories there is a tale of one 
of the heroes who, after spending all of his inheritance, 
found a friend in the guise of a genie, who, after leading him 
in a multitude of situations, gave him an abundance of 
mone3 r , and then gave him the ninth statue. When this hero 
goes into the cellar to find this ninth statue, he finds the form 
of the girl whom he loved. 

And the genie sa3 T s to him, in substance, that of all the 



Being a Woman, What Can I Do? 25 

treasures be has, the ninth statue, or the person of the woman 
who is virtuous and loving, is of more value than all the 
wealth of the world. 

Being a woman. 

Being a woman was once thought to be a weaker vessel. 
But we know differently now. 

A woman is really the strongest of the two, and is able to 
bear the greatest burdens without any fainting or repining. 
But above this we know that the God who has made us all has 
given a power into every woman's hands and into her keeping 
which is above the power of all the kings of the earth. 

There is nothing that is not possible for her to gain and 
nothing that is beyond her reach. What is in this world is 
hers if she will only reach for it. She is a woman. 

All the treasures of the world, which are won by severe toil 
and prulonged effort of the man, are brought to the feet of 
the woman that she may smile on the man. 

Her smile repays all the toil and all the fatigue. 

On the earth there is nothing of more value than a woman's 
love. 

Being a woman, what can I do? 

Being a woman, what can I not do? 

The woman is the power and the woman is the ruler; let 
the man say what he may. 

Next to Christ, was and is the bride, and the bride was a 
woman. 

But there is something which is of more importance than 
in determining the sex of the person. 

Where do you start from? 

Where are you going? 

Who is your pilot? 

If you have an idea that all the world is to run and fall at 
your feet as soon as you spread out your apron, you will 
wait until man}' a sun goes down and man}' a dewdrop falls, 
before that day comes to you. 

There is something to do and you have to find out what is 
your part, and whose queen you are, and what world you are 
to conquer. 



26 Being a Woman, What Can I Do? 

You are to get an observation and see where your voyage 
is to end, before }T>u commence. If you are not the pilot of 
your voyage, and if you do not think you can pilot your own 
vessel, then you are to have a pilot who can tell you where 
you are going. 

The first thing, in our mind, for you to do, is to find out 
what t you are. 

God made 3*011. 

Before you were fashioned in the womb God saw and loved 
3*011. Do not forget this for one moment. God saw and 
loved you. 

And at this time you are the object of His solicitude, and 
He saj's to you, -- Come to Me and buy gold " and all the 
precious things of this world. 

" You are my child." 

While I have made man, I have made you to comfort, suc- 
cor, uphold and guide him. 

Next to the high God, the man worships the woman he 
loves. 

The facts are, that, being a woman, 3*011 are a ship that is 
freighted with the most valuable of all cargoes in the world, 
and you are the embodiment of all the most valuable of all 
the possessions of the earth. 

You are a woman. 

The world centers in 3*011 and in your welfare. 

You are the home. 

You are the mother of all the children on the earth. 

Without 3 r ou there would be no real happiness on this earth 
and no abiding place. 

You are the pillar and the hope of all of the men and of 
all the growing nations of the earth to-da3*. 

The man who looks at 3*011 as a pla3*thing is a fool. The 
man who does 3*ou an injuiy is the man whom God is going 
to punish. Sure. 

The man who thinks he can live without the woman is one 
of the biggest fools in the world. He can not do it. The 
woman is the home-maker, and there is no such thing as the 
womanless home. 



Being a Woman, What Can I Do? 27 

The home without the woman is siniply a den where the 
wild beasts hide. 

Being a woman. 

God bless yon, m} T daughter; the Lord has blessed you by 
making } r ou a woman — the treasure of the earth. 

But, with this responsibility, there is some account to be 
given to }'Our Maker. 

God made you. He demands of you a perfect obedience 
to His will, and he is determined that there shall be no mis- 
takes at all. With so much power there shall be some re- 
sponsibility and some accountability to Him. 

This is the only rock your vessel can ever run on to that 
will wreck you, — the loss of the pilot and the loss of your 
charts and compass. 

We commence then by saying to you that with the fact of 
3'our being a woman there is more accountability than in the 
man. 

You have more at stake. 

You have more serious enemies than the man. They are 
hidden by the wayside and they are of the beasts of the 
world who are possessed of the devil. 

The storms which strike the man are worse to you, since 
you are the objective point with the devil. 

All passions, all the hatreds, all the envies and all the ani- 
mosities in this world are concentrated on you to break you 
up from an} r object in life. Your home, } T our children, your 
husband and your subjects are every moment being tampered 
with, and someone is trying at this moment to rob you of 
3'our rightful possessions. 

Can you conquer these enemies? 

That depends. 

If God made 3 t ou, and we do not doubt this for a 
second, then He must be looking at you and willing to 
help you in all of your undertakings. He is. He has 
said so. 

He has said to }T>u, "Come unto Me." And it is notice- 
able that all the writers of the world have acknowledged the 
fact that the women are more ready to 2:0 to God than are 



Being a Woman, What Can I Do? 



the men. The women are more ready to bow down to their 
Maker than the men. 

We think this is because the woman stands nearer to God 
than the man does, and feels her nearness to her Maker more 
than the man, who is too apt to drift into the material part 
of the universe and allow the spiritual part to escape his no- 
tice. 

But there is something for you to do, and that something 
is for you to make all the ways of your going and your com- 
ing depend on the Lord who has made you. 

In short, if you have a proper sense of your position in 
this life, you will as soon as possible try to have the Lord to 
be your help in all your actions and your Mentor in all of 
your thoughts. 

Let the good Lord be your pilot, and let God be your 
chart. Keep yourself in all cases subject to the will of the 
Maker of you and have the most perfect understanding with 
Him. 

You need not fear one moment, if the Lord is your helper. 
Oh, the people who are called the world are of no more 
value to you in your guidance than so many chickens. Do 
not listen to them. Go to God and get your desires satisfied 
and feel that you are the King's daughter and that this earth 
will never hold an} T thing half as precious as your own self. 
And this is easy. Take your own mind and go to God. 
Look at your book of instructions (alwa} r s the Bible) and you 
will soon learn what are } 7 our possibilities. Do you want a 
situation? God will give you one. 

And right here there is something which you should learn 
that is not laid down in the so-called associations of this 
world. 

The world and the people whom you are liable to fall into 
contact with tell you that ' ' the Lord helps those who help 
themselves. " 

This is one of the lies of the devil, and one that you must 
get rid of just as soon as you know how. 

The Lord does no such thing. 

The Lord succors those who are not able to help them- 



Being a Woman, What Can I Do? 29 

selves, and if He was tnat kind of a God who helped them 
who helped themselves, I, for one, would despise Him. 

That stoiy is a lie born of the devil to take your mind off 
the actual facts of this life. 

The facts are that the Lord loves and helps (don't forget 
this) those who are desirous to do His will and to learn of 
Him You have one Book of instructions, and this Book of 
instructions is all that 3-011. can go b}\ This is your priceless 
chart, sextant, compass and chronometer. 

God does not need you to do an} r thing. If He did. He 
would not be the all-powerful God that He is. 

He asks you to come to Him and He will satisfy } r ou with 
all the gifts of the earth. The idea that you must do some- 
thing to merit the favor of God, is an old idea born of the 
pagan idolaters. You simply have to look to God and 
desire Him and He appears to you and becomes your friend. 

This shows you how absurd the idea is that "you must 
help your own self . " Look at the condition of the Israel- 
ites when they came out of the land of Egypt. They could 
not help themselves. God helped them. 

When they could not help themselves then God helped 
them. 

When Daniel was in the lions' den, did anyone sa} r " The 
Lord helps them who helps themselves"? Did Daniel say so? 

Well, we do not think he said anything of the sort. 

When Christ hung on the cross did anyone say ' ' The Lord 
helps those who helps themselves " ? 

When the apostles were in the jail and manacled, did they 
sing "The Lord helps those who help themselves" ? 

We do not think they sang anything of the sort. They 
sang, all right enough. But they never had any such a fool 
thought that "the Lord helps those who help themselves." 

Napoleon had that idea, and one of his famous sa} T ings was 
that ' ' Providence was on the side with the heaviest artilleiy. " 

Napoleon believed in the heavy-artillery business, and 
he kept on believing in it. 

One day his artillery turned up missing; and Napoleon 
died at St. Helena with a cancer of the stomach. 



30 Being a Woman, What Can I Do? 

But the hens of your set will tell you that you have to do 
something, or, as they will come at } r ou. they will say, ' ' Oh, 
well, then you can sit right down and the Lord will bring 
these things into your lap. " 

But that does not follow. 

We do not mean anything of that kind. That is a kind 
of razzle-dazzle that these people, who do not have any God, 
have over to frighten you and to shake your mind. These old 
black crows try to keep 3^011 from believing anything at all. We 
mean this: If you make a point of being right with God, 
we tell you in all confidence that God will come to you 
b} T means of His Spirit and guide }T>u in the proper way and 
show } r ou what to do, and you will not be mistaken in any of 
your goings or your comings. 

We say, first, get down on your knees and ask God to go 
with you and to be your guide in this life. 

And we will tell you that if you do this you will find that 
every day you will live nearer to God and every day you 
will have the Spirit of God to guide you in all of your un- 
dertakings. 

We do not mean that you are to sit down. But we say 
that if you are in doubt as to what to do, then we say to you 
stop and see what God will have you to do. 

There is no such thing as any failure on the part of God 
in showing you what is the best thing for you to do in this 
life.. 

It is a sure thing, and the God who has promised this guid- 
ance is a God who does not lie. 

Therefore, in all of 3'our uncertainties, we' tell 3-011, first, go 
to God. 

Do 3 t ou want a situation? Ask God. 

Do 3 t ou want a pair of shoes? Ask God. 

You need not hesitate a second. God made 3-011 and He 
loves 3-011. 

Ask Him for 3-our wants and do not be any wa3 r s back- 
ward. 

He has bidden 3-011 to come to Him and tells 3-011 that He 
will answer. 



Being a Woman, What Can I Do? 31 

Are you weak? Ask God for that strength. He will 
give to you all that is needed. Whatever you may lack, do 
not hesitate to go to God and ask Him. 

People will tell you if you do not work you will not get it, 
but do not listen to these worldly people who will try to 
keep you from being owned by the throne where you are a 
daughter. Just ask the Lord and He will bring it about 
that you will have all that you may need, and it will come, 
just as certain as you are reading this book. 

I have heard some women wish that they had been born a 
man. 

This sort of desire to change one's condition in life, which 
is impossible to be accomplished, is one of the foolish things 
of this life. 

If one should be thankful for life, one should be thankful 
for being born one of the King's daughters. 

There is nothing impossible with God and there is nothing 
one can ask of any earthly father that is not usually 
granted. With the heavenly Father there is yet more 
readiness to answer our petitions to Him. We should be 
the suppliants. 

There is no promise of anything unless we go to Him and 
ask for what we may need. But if we do go, then there is 
abundant promise that we shall receive all that we may need 
and we may ask for. 

To any one who has never been in the habit of asking God 
for anything, this may seem to be very foolish, but it is a fact 
that what a child of God asks that child is quite certain to 
receive. 

Being a woman, what can I do? 

If you are a woman, whom has the Lord put on your side? 
We tell you that the world is to be conquered by just such 
persons as }^ou are. Go to God and find out what He de- 
sires you to do and the rest will be easy. Do not worry 
about the circumstances you may be in or the family you 
came from. Do not bother a minute whether you have any 
education or whether you have any sense. God can give you 
all of these earthty things in a minute, and the only thing 



Being a "Woman. What Can I Do' 



which should occupy your alteution one minute is. whether 
you are a child of G-od or not. 

That is all the Master desires to have of you. He 
knows it. And if you are a child of God all the world is 
yours. 

Being a woman, what can I do . 

If you are one of the womankind that live near to God 
and one of those who desire to live near to God, we tell }^ou 
that the angels have you in charge and you need not be dis- 
couraged at anything which may come before you. All will 
be well. You are a King's daughter. 

Xo matter what may happen. God is seeing you and God 
is your Father who is going to take care of you, and you 
should not waste one minute nor one second in trying to 
know just what the Lord is determined to have you do. 

Do what the Lord sets in your way to come before you, and 
the good Lord will see to all the rest. 

Xo matter what misfortunes ma}' happen to }'ou, remem- 
ber that the sparrows fall, but they have the Father's notice. 

You are much greater than all the sparrows in the world. 

You may have met misfortunes. 

There was a story repeated in our hearing to the effect 
that in one of the companies belonging to the U. S. Army, 
the captain got mad at one of the inferior officers and de- 
graded him and sent him to the rear to cook. The army 
moved on and the poor degraded officer, now a private, was 
still in the rear cooking for the company. The company 
bivouacked on a place from where they expected to make an 
attack. But in the early morning the enemy fired a mine di- 
rectly under the place where the company were sleeping and 
all were blown up and killed. Not a soul was left from the 
company, who were all alive and in the best of health an 
hour before. 

But the private who was degraded for no cause was alive 
and well. 

And keep another thing in your mind. < ' The darkest 
day, live till to-morrow, will have passed away. " 

Don't feel that all is lost as long as you can get down on 



Being a Woman, What Can I Do? 33 

your knees and pray. Do not repine a minute at things 
which are not your own fault. 

You are a King's daughter. He smiles on you. Have 
courage becoming a daughter of a King. 

Look up and think that the Father who made you is sit- 
ting on His throne and is watching jou to see how you are 
going to win this battle. 

Do not allow the spirits of evil to have an} T influence over 
you. Stick to truth, and that truth is, that, being a woman, 
you are the best and the grandest of all creatures who have 
been made by the Lord of heaven and earth. 

Your Maker and your Father has made the sun and the 
heavens and all that in them is and now is waiting to give 
you all there is of the earth, if you will be faithful and patient. 

Who can tell the lessons which j^our Father wishes }^ou to 
learn? 

The trials which may seem so hard to bear and so griev- 
ous to be borne are of the lessons which your Father wishes 
you to learn. 

Will you not have patience and bear anything, if it be the 
will of the Father? 

Yes. 

That is a good daughter. Be brave and think that as God 
has made } r ou, so you are here to do His will, and that will 
is your pleasure. 

And when God lifts you up, as He surely will, do you re- 
member your low estate and all of your trials, and thank the 
good Father for His mercies. 

Whatever station you maj be placed in, recall the fact 
that all your responsibilities are to your Father who is look- 
ing on you to see how you will bear prosper^. Not every- 
one can bear to be made prosperous and raised into an ele- 
vated position. 

Think of this. It is true. Could }^ou bear prosperity? 

Do jou think over all the paths yo\x have been through 
and see that you are not proud nor forgetful of the fact that 
God is your father and there are also some other daughters 
in the world beside yourself. 
C 



34 Being a Woman, What Can I Do? 

Keep it constant^ in jour mind that as you are the daughter 
of a King, so you must behave in a manner becoming the 
King's daughter. 

What can you do? 

Being a King's daughter } t ou can do anything that is to be 
done on the earth. 

Being a woman, what can I do? 

As a King's daughter I am a princess, and can do the will 
of God, m} T heaventy Father, the King of earth and heaven. 

Being a woman. 

Being a daughter of a King, I can do anything which is to 
be done on earth. 



CHAPTER IV. 
THE CARE OF THE BODY. 

The first thing any young lady should learn is to take the 
best of care of her person. She will take a pride in this care 
as soon as she sees how much different one looks who takes 
good care of one's body, and the appearance of one who will 
not take care of the body. It is difficult to say which is the 
most important part to take care of, as the whole body is 
so evenly connected together, that any failure to take care of 
any one part of the body surely places more work on some 
other part of the body, and this extra work on any one or- 
gan always means a state of departure from the state of health. 
Thus, we see that if we take care of the skin and do not pay 
a proper attention to the condition of the bowels, there will 
be a state of constipation or a state of diarrhea, which will 
surely bring the body to the state of departure from the 
natural or healthy condition, and it is this departure from the 
natural which is called disease. 

• We will commence with the bowels, as there is no doubt 
but what there is a tendency in everyone, who has never 
given the matter much thought, to allow the bowels to get 
out of order. 

The bowels, from the mouth to the anus, are said to be as 
long as five times the height of the person. Thus, if the 
person was five feet high, there would be twent} r -five feet of 
intestines. One can see how important it would be to keep 
this length of a hollow tube in the cleanest condition, and it 
is true that unless this tube or intestine is kept clean there 
will surely be a disease of the body. 

The first point to remember is, that unless the food is 
thoroughly chewed up while in the mouth, there is no promise 
of any regularity of the intestinal discharges. Mastication 
is positively necessary to good health. In other words, 
there is no certain discharge of the bowels, and if the body 

35 



36 The Care of the Body. 

becomes constipated there is a positive source of injury to 
the body at the lower part of the bowels. 

The law of. nature is, that there should be an operation 
from the bowels daily. If this does not take place there 
will be some of the dejecta which should pass off from the 
body, remain to be absorbed and again pass into the blood. 

Elimination of all of the effete materials from the body 
commences with the thorough mastication of the food. Un- 
less the saliva is first mixed with the food there is sure to be 
constipation of the bowels. 

If this proper chewing of food is done, there is good rea- 
son to think there will be a daily movement which will 
cleanse the lower bowels, and, in turn, cleanse and relieve 
the whole body from its effete materials. It is certain there 
can be no health while there is constipation. If this move- 
ment of the bowels does not take place each day, there 
should be some means used to have it take place, and this 
should be in the line of assisting nature and not for the pur- 
pose of punishing the body for its remissness. In other 
words, there should be some means taken to help the body to 
have this natural movement and not an artificial movement 
forced from the bowels. An artificial movement is one 
which is caused by the action of some article which is taken 
for the avowed and specific purpose of moving the bowels. 
These artificial substances are called "medicine" but they 
have no right to the name of medicine. 

The most common of these substances is some form of 
quicksilver, or mercury. The form of mercury most com- 
monly given, is in the form of calomel, or blue mass, and is 
given in the form of a pill. The immediate effect of mer- 
cury is to irritate the bowels, and then nature makes an effort 
to drive this poison out of the system and there is a copious 
discharge from the bowels. This is what is called plrysic. 
This is also called a "cathartic" action. The secondary 
effect of this and all other kinds of mercurial preparations, 
is to salivate the victim and loosen all the teeth. 

Nearly all of the patent pills of the day are composed of 
mercury as one of the ingredients. There are other sub- 



The Care of the Body. 37 

stances given, among which aloes has been one of the most 
common. Aloes causes the bowels to become irritated and the 
muscular coats to become contracted and there is an action 
from the bowels which is said to be beneficial. But with this 
contraction there is also a contraction of the muscles at the 
end of the passage, or the anus, and the veins are strangu- 
lated. Then, when these veins are strangulated, the portion 
of blood which is in those veins is coagulated and dies. In 
this condition at the next operation or movement of the 
bowels there is this dead blood to be passed back into the 
system, and this dead blood is of such a nature that it clogs 
up the finer capillaries of the liver and the skin and one can 
see these muddy complexions anywhere one goes and looks; 
in society or on the street. In nearly all instances of these 
muddy complexions the bearer of this complexion has piles. 

To attribute all of the conditions known as piles to the 
use of aloes, or to any other cathartic, would be erroneous. 

The use of any drink which is stimulating to the muscular 
portion of the body is apt to cause the conditions favorable 
to the piles. Thus coffee is one of the most certain pro- 
vocatives of piles, and it may almost be asserted that every 
one who is a habitual drinker of coffee is certain to have 
the piles. So far as we can judge, there are none of the people 
who are subject to this distressing condition known as the 
piles who have not been coffee drinkers or have taken some 
of the common articles of so-called medicince, which are 
termed ' ' cathartics. ' ' 

The first thing which should be learned is to thoroughly 
chew up the food in one's mouth. If this is done there will 
be good digestion and good peristaltic motion. (Peristaltic 
motion means intestinal motion. ) And there will be, also, a 
good condition of the bowels to keep free from constipation. 

But if the constipated habit has already been formed on 
any of the readers, we would say it is time to break up this 
habit, and the sooner one breaks up this habit of constipation 
the sooner there will be the condition of health. No person 
can be healthy who is constipated. To overcome the habit 
of constipation there have been thousands of remedies, and 



38 



The Care of the Body. 




Fig. 



I. The Cardiac Portion of the Stomach. 2. Pylorus. 3. Duo- 
denum or Second Stomach. 4. Transverse Colon. 5. Ascend- 
ing Colon. 6. Descending Colon. 7. Small Intestines. 8. Rec- 
tum. 9. Anus. 



The Care op the Body. 39 

there are few of them that have even the faintest grains of 
common sense to support them in their pretensions as aids to 
the body. 

We will give some remedies for constipation, and while we 
do so let it be understood that there are some persons who 
can not take many of the good things, and there are others 
who seem to desire to have something entirely different from 
anyone else. 

The first article which ma}' be truly said to be the famous 
remecry for all ailments of the bowels is the use of water. 

One can drink a glass of cold water in the morning and 
one before each of the other meals and then if there is not 
immediate help there can be two of these glasses of cold 
water drank which will, in the shortest possible time, bring 
on a regular movement of the bowels as well as the daily 
evacuation of all the materials which should pass off through 
the bowels. 

We class water as the great remedy for all kinds of bowel 
troubles, and we can say that we have yet to see the first case 
where the continued use of water would not remedy these 
conditions quicker and better than anj'thing else which has 
ever been invented. Some persons may have to drink three 
or even ten glasses of water early in the morning, but 
usually one or two glasses of water will overcome any ordi- 
naiy case of constipation which has been acquired through 
ignorance or neglect. 

But if the water, by a steady use, does not seem to carry 
off all of the materials, or does not act quick enough, then 
we may try to aid nature so that this effete material shall 
be removed out of the system. 

To this end, a daily use of an injection should be made to 
the bowels. This injection ma}' be made of warm water, or 
water which is not too warm to relax the tissues. Absolutely 
the cold bath and the cold injection will do more to eradicate 
the conditions which are known as constipation and piles, 
than any other remedy we know of. 

The use of the injection has been deprecated and placed 
aside by many people as beneath their notice, but we think 



40 



The Care of the Body. 



this is not wise. There is nothing so bad as a constipated 
habit, and, although the use of the syringe is not a pleasant 
thing to contemplate, there is this to be said: It is far better 
and a thousand times safer than the use of anything that is 
commonly called a purgative, or a cathartic, in the shape of 
medicine. 




Fig. 2. 

We think that the Fountain syringe is one of the best, and 
it can be purchased for about a dollar or for two dollars, and 
if this is not practicable there should be a common bulb 
syringe, which can be obtained for a dollar, and of these 
there are a number of good kinds that are reliable. The 
Davidson (the No. 1 ) will cost about $2. The No. 2 will 
cost $1.50. The Goodyear Rubber Company manufacture 
a syringe which is called their "Union No. 3 " and is sold 
for about a dollar, and is as good as any in the market, and 
we think the best in the market for the money. The lower 
grades of syringe are not worth carrying home. The brands 
"Alpha " and " Omega " are also good syringes. 



The Care of the Body. 41 

We do not advise the use of these articles unless there is 
and has been constipation, but if this habit is formed we 
think there is nothing of so much value as the syringe, and 
we are sure if every young lady would possess one of these 
useful articles to relieve the overburdened body when it is 
needed, there would be much less of what is called ' ' female 
diseases. " » 

After one has the syringe and is in earnest to regain 
health, there are some things which will assist in bringing 
about the habit of regularity of the bowels. These are the 
foods. The grains are best, as there is nothing which will so 
soon bring the bowels into a soluble condition as the use of 
grain and a vegetable diet and especially a free use of 
the coarser grains and the fruits. The use of meats as a 
food while the bowels are constipated, should be avoided. 
Milk is an article which often constipates the bowels and is a 
producer of pimples on the face. The use of milk should 
be guarded until its action is known, as it is not the same on 
all persons. Some persons can drink milk with impunity, 
and others can not touch it with any safety. Potatoes are 
unfit food and should be avoided as detrimental to the body. 
They do nothing in the body which is of benefit, and are of 
all the vegetables the worst for a young lady to eat. Squash, 
cabbage, turnips, beets and beans are of value as well as are 
all the grains, the grains being of far the most value as 
they contain the elements of nutrition in a far greater degree 
than the watery portions of some of the vegetables named, 
but these vegetables are useful in carrying off the wastes of 
the body (or more strictly speaking, they furnish a material 
which is of value to the vital force to aid in a carrying off 
of these effete matters), and the same may be said of the 
fruits. 

If anyone has constipation and is able to have a good 
daily movement by eating raw apples, it is sometimes advis- 
able. But there are many persons who are constipated who 
can not bear to have the raw apples in their stomach, for, as 
soon as the apples are in the stomach there will be a rough- 
ness come on the face. Many times there are a set of pirn- 



42 The Care of the Body. 

pies which come on the face which are alone attributable to 
this raw-apple eating or to milk drinking. Baked apples do 
not have the same effect. The common buckwheat cakes 
are another detrimental article which should be avoided by 
an}- of the delicate organizations which are not out in the 
open air constantly. Cornstarch is an abomination, but 
corn meal bread is an excellent remedy for constipation. In 
all of these conditions there should be an absolute avoidance 
of all of the finer parts of the grains, as of buckwheat and 
of wheat, and a recourse to the parts that are called coarse, as 
of the graham and the whole grains. Fine-flour bread and 
the fineness of the buckwheat are causes of constipation. 
All fried things are usually causes of diseased skin and of 
constipation. These articles should not be taken as food un- 
til one is in the open air and has all the exercise which can be 
taken. 

For the falling of the womb, for the leucorrhea and for 
constipation, we counsel ever}' young lady to possess a 
syringe and use it daily, with an abundance of warm water, 
say four or six quarts, so as to wash out all the large bowels 
which are known as the rectum, the transverse colon and the as- 
cending colon. Wash out this colon and this large intestine; 
fill this part of your bowels with warm water once a day and 
the time will soon come when you will be rid of your falling 
of the womb, the leucorrhea and every vestige of constipa- 
tion. This habit of a large injection to the bowels to cleanse 
them out, so that you do not have any of the old matter to go 
into the internal organs by absorption, is of more absolute 
value in every female disease, than all the medicine which 
was ever dug up out of the earth. 

For these large and copious injections, use the water as 
warm as you can comfortably bear and take the injection 
while you are lying down, and have patience until you have 
placed the quantity of four quarts in the bowels. Warm 
water can not hurt you, and it will do you good by cleansing 
out the most common sources of body poisoning viz. , the 
refuse from the great colon. 

After the syringe has been named there are yet some 



The Care of the Body. 



other modes of overcoming the habit of constipation, which 
are not injurious. 

The eating of a ripe orange in the morning is one of 
the good things, as well as the habit of eating a baked 
apple as soon as one is risen and washed and dressed. 
The glass of cold water should follow this fruit, and the 
glass of cold water will be found as of the most benefit 
just after rising. 

There was an old prescription which at one time the author 
was very partial to. Take an egg and beat it up in a pint of 
cold water and drink it as soon as one is up in the morning. 
But he found it was the water that did the acting and the egg 
did not have much of any effect except as the water was in 
excess of the egg. So we returned to the water. 

After one is an invalid from many habits and much med- 
icine and there does not seem to be any action to the bowels, 
then it is advised to have a large spoonful of good sweet oil 
and to have a lump of sugar, and dissolve the lump, or 
scrape it up and take this oil as early in the morning as one 
can after getting dressed. If it nauseates, lie down a few 
minutes and wait until the oil passes downward through the 
intestines. 

The habit of chewing up a mouthful of the pulverized 
slippery elm bark has been found to be of great use to some 
of the hardest cases in constipation. This is of no value 
except where the bowels seem to be dried up, and then it 
seems to work like a charm. We think one of the reasons 
why the elm acts so nicely on some of the constipated per- 
sons is because there are worms present and the elm is one of 
the safe vermifuges. 

Whatever you may think of doing, do not neglect to have 
a passage of the bowels daily, and see to it that the bowels 
are well cleared out at each evacuation. Do not allow any 
of the material which should pass off to remain in the bowels, 
to be absorbed again and to come out as bad breath and of- 
fensive secretions in some other parts of the body. Think 
this over carefully as there is much more in it than appears 
oti the surface. 



CHAPTER V. 
THE SKIN. 

We have a little study for you this morning which will he 
profitable for you and yours, if it is learned and kept in your 
head. 

Do you see this figure ? 




Fig. 3. 

c. Stratum Corneum. /. Stratum Lucidum. g. Stratum 
Granulosum. m. Stratum Malpighii. n. b. Nerve Fibrils. 

It represents the epidermis of the human body. 
The epidermis is the outer covering of the skin. 
It is, in fact, the outer skin. Inside of this is the true 
skin. 



The Skin. 45 



You see llie wua^j lines which are opposite c. This is 
called the stratum corneum. This stratum corneum consists 
of many layers of horny, dry, non-nucleated scales — which 
means that there is no nucleus in these substances. 

This la} T er is always thickest where pressure is applied, as 
on the soles of the feet and the palms of the hands. 

Look care full}' at this layer and you will see that the 
scales appear to be flat or flattish, so they can fit each other 
in a most accurate manner. This is called the horny layer, 
or the kiyer of scales. 

You will notice on the feet of persons who walk much 
that there is a much greater thickness than on those who do 
not walk a great deal. So, too, on the working man's hand, 
the skin appears to be tough and hard. This is because the 
stratum corneum, or the horny layer, has been growing 
thicker to protect the inner skin. 

Nature has a way to urotect herself, if she is allowed to 
have her own way. 

The next layer is called the stratum lucidum (seen at I), 
but the upper part of this layer is called the stratum gran- 
ulosum, or the layer of granules. (See g. ) Look at m and 
you will see what is called the stratum malpighii. These to- 
gether constitute the layers of the outer skin and when 
together are called the epidermis, or the covering skin. 

It is in this last named layer that all the coloring 
material is found which distinguishes the light from the 
dark races. 

This laj-er of malpighii is not a straight layer like the rest 
of the layers, but is wavy and dips down to fill in the 
spaces between what are called the papilla? of the true skin. 
(See Fig. 3.) 

When we remove the epidermis we find that these papillae 
are all over the body, but are largest in the hand and in the 
foot. In the foot and the hand these papillae are ar- 
ranged in rows. These papillae are surrounded by blood 
vessels and nerves. 

Although this little engraving looks quite small there is a 
large amount of study in it. 



46 The Skin. 



You will notice in the cut showing the epidermis we had: 

f 1. Stratum corneum. 
P . , . 12. Stratum lucidum. 
* ' 1 3. Stratum granulosum. 

[ 4. Stratum malpighii. 

Now notice that there is no sign of a blood vessel in 
the epidermis. But the moment you strike the papillae there 
are blood vessels in great abundance found surrounding the 
papillae, as well as a network of nerves. 

It is into this true skin that the poison-dosing doctor 
pushes his hypodermic needle and discharges the poison nar- 
cotic that will narcotize the victim and possibly send the sick 
wretch into the next world without waking up. Or, if this is 
not done then it is certain that the body will not be in as good 
condition to resist the encroachments of the disease as be- 
fore the poison hypodermic was put under the skin. 

There are two kinds of glands in the skin: The seba- 
ceous glands and the sudoriparous gland. 

Figure 5 is a cut of a sebaceous gland. 




Fig 4 

Papillae of the skin. (The blood vessels injected ) a. The touch 
corpuscles. Wagner's. Capillary loups are seen. 

Usually this gland opens into a hair follicle, but not al- 
ways. On the red margins of the lips and other places 
these sebaceous glands open directly on the surface. 

The matter which is secreted by these sebaceous glands is 



The Skin. 47 



of a fatty nature and is fluid. But often this fatty fluid 
stagnates and becomes solid and forms the flesh worms so 
annoying to the growing youth of both sexes. 

In some persons there are also minute, mite-like animals 
which are alive and in fine order to live, found in this seba- 
ceous gland. 

The physiologists call this animal the demodex folli- 
culorum. 

It does not require any great stretch of the imagination to 
say that people we have seen in large gatherings have these an- 
imals in their sebaceous glands and that we can not stomach 
them. " They smell badly. People who do not wash every day 
are the most likely to have them. And those persons who do 
not wash of tener than once all winter are among those persons 
who are the most likely to have the animals as well as any 
of the fevers which arise from filth. 

Of a certainty, the persons who do not wash are the ones 
who have the animals living in their sebaceous glands. You 
can not wonder that these non-washers have that "tough" ap- 
pearance. 

Oh, no! We do riot say that you and your people have 
these bugs for sure, but we may suppose that if you belong 
to the haters-of -water class, those gland animals have a good 
hold in } T our sebaceous glands. 

And the more you hate water the more you have these lit- 
tle bugs. 

There is now a certain fact to which we wish to call your 
attention, and have you remember that we are talking to you 
for your own good and not for ours. This study is for your 
benefit. 

We have tried to impress upon you the fact of there being 
four distinct layers of the epidermis. 

Now note that there is not a blood vessel in the epidermis, 
but around the papillae there is no point where a pin could be 
put down and not touch one of these blood vessels. There 
are some nerve fibrils in the epidermis, but no blood vessels. 

Notice that each layer looks differently. The outside is a 
layer of scales. A clear layer. A layer of granules, and a 



48 



The Skin. 



layer that dips clown and surrounds the papillae. The pa- 
pillae are all surrounded with blood vessels. 

Notice, please, that the outside layer is being thrown off 
at eveiy move of the body. When you wash there are 
some scales thrown off. 

As fast as the horny layer is thrown off there is a fresh 
supply goes up from the stratum lucidum or clear layer. And 
in turn there is another fresh supply from the stratum gran- 
ulosum. and the blood from the arteries surrounding or enter- 
ing the papillae, supplies new corpuscles for the stratum 
malpighii. 




Fig. 5. 

Sebaceous gland. These usually open into a hair follicle, but 
sometimes open directly upon the surface. 

Just think of this for a minute. When you wash the body 
there are some of these scales thrown off and all the layers 
move up to supply the loss of the outside layer. 

When you rub the papillae, this motion causes a good cir- 



The Skin. 49 



culation of the blood and some of these scales of the outside 
layer are thrown off. Then the la}'ers supply this loss and 
new skin is formed. 

You know very well that when you wash the body you 
have what is called an increased circulation. The skin be- 
comes red. The blood flows into the capillaries of the skin 
and fresh blood seems to fill the skin. 

Consider still farther. When you wash the skin there is a 
new supply of scales formed for the outer layer, a new sup- 
ply carried up from the layer beneath; a new supply all the 
way round. And the blood that surrounds or enters into the 
papillae carries a new supply for all the layers in their turn. 

Is not this a wonderful provision of nature ? 

The more one uses the skin, the fresher and the newer 
that skin becomes. 

We begin to understand now how it is that when one 
washes the body frequently, that a new skin and a fresh look 
is on all of the bocly that we can see. 

And we can see how it is that the people who do not 
wash ever}' day have that peculiar "tough" appearance 
which we can not help but despise. 

This not washing also explains why it is that many people, 
whom we may think all right in other respects, have that 
dreadful smell about them so hateful to others as well as to 
themselves. The sebaceous follicles are filled with the ani- 
mals that are like mites in a cheese. Their armpits, their 
toes, in fact their breath and their entire body, have a smell 
which is execrable. 

You begin to understand how important it is to have the 
body washed every day. We can see that if our body is 
not washed every day that it stands a chance to grow up a 
"tough." 

Yes, indeed, our body is going to be washed every day. 

We do not want any toughs in our family. 

If we have any desire to see any toughs we can go on the 
street and see a thousand. These toughs have a greasy look 
which comes because the sebaceous glands are not cleaned out 
daily. And the little fat and dirt-loving skin bugs are held 



J) 



50 The Skin. 



in such love with these toughs Unit they will not wash them 
out of the skin. 

May we now call your attention to another point which 
will be of great service to you one of these clays. 

The skin is washed. 

By washing the skin you have rubbed off some of the 
horny layer, or layer of scales. 

Now the stratum lucidum has to come up and replace the 
horny, scaly layer. Then the other layers have to come and 
supply the layers above them. And then — then the arteries 
around and in the papilla? have to supply fresh blood corpus- 
cles to form the layer of malpighii. 

You have a new supply of blood. Where from? 

Can you think ? 

That fresh supply of blood is directly from the heart. 

Do } t ou get the idea ? 

You have not only washed the skin. You have called the 
blood from the heart to supply the demand made upon the 
outside layer of the skin. 

You have actually made a fresh circulation or a better cir- 
culation than there was before } t ou washed the skin. 

Yes. And that circulation is not alone to the skin, but 
you have made the circulation of the whole body better and 
fresher than it was before, because you have washed off the 
older layers of the skin and brought up a new supply from 
the blood of the heart and allowed the old, worn-out, effete 
materials to pass through the pores of the skin. 

Do you see something else ? 

Do } t ou see that if the blood has been brought up from the 
heart, that it must be fresh, arterial blood that comes from 
the heart ? 

You have washed out the sebaceous glands and so 3-011 
have given them a chance to secrete more material. 

This material comes from the blood. It is said that the 
old and worn-out and effete material is passed off from the 
blood and goes out through the sebaceous glands and the 
sudoriparous glands. 

Your washing has had this effect on the blood. It has had 



The Skin. 51 



the effect of cleaning the blood that was surrounding the pa- 
pillae as well as cleaning the skin. So that the blood that 
was washed out is going back to the heart really better than 
it came awa}^ from the heart. 

That is, some of the materials which were effete were 
passed off in the washing and the blood was better when it 
went back to the heart than it was when it came out of the 
heart, in some of its constituents or waste material being 
passed off. 

Consider this a moment. 

You have cleansed the skin oy your washing. 

Made a better circulation. 

Washed out a portion of the blood. 

Cleansed the body. 

Anj'thing else ? 

As the pure blood goes back to the different parts of the 
bod} T and carries the cleansed blood, it must be true that the 
inside of these organs, the liver, the kidne} T s, the heart, the 
spleen and the lungs, have all received a supply of blood 
which has been purified by this washing of the skin. In 
other words, although we can not take out the organs we 
have named, yet we can wash the blood that passes through 
them, and so we may say that we are able to wash all of 
those organs b}' washing the blood that passes through them. 

Do you think that what we have been talking about is all 
true ? 

Do you ask how often one should wash the body all over ? 

Are } t ou realty interested in the care of your body ? 

Let us ask the question. 

How often do 3-011 have a passage of the bowels ? Once 
in twenty-four hours ? 

If you do not, } t ou should have. 

And this answers your question as to how often one snould 
wash the body. 

Once in twenty -four hours. 

Consider that the glands of the skin secrete and throw off, 
every twenty-four hours, the amount of twenty to forty 
ounces of insensible perspiration. If you do not have these 



52 The Skix. 



glands in a clean condition } T ou can not pass off that amount 
of material, and if you do not pass off that amount, or the 
amount necessary to }~our bodily health, you may be sure 
that your body is sure to suffer sooner or later. 

Unless you wash every twenty-four hours it is a certain 
fact that you have not a clean skin. 

Have not a good circulation of the blood. 

Do not keep your internal organs in good shape. 

Have an extra supply of the scaly layer of the skin, and 
you are in a condition to become acquainted with disease. 

Won't you make this a little study ? 

Don't you think that this little study can be made to bene- 
fit your body ? 

Are you so well that you can keep perfectly well under all 
circumstances ? 



CHAPTER VI. 
THE TEETH. 

Some years ago while on a journey on the cars, a professor 
of a medical college got on the train and came and sat in the 
seat beside us. 

The conversation turned on the teeth and digestion. 
Among other assertions this medical professor told us that 
' ' it did not matter so much what a person ate, as digestion 
was a plrysiological act, and not a chemical act," 
"Moreover," said this professor of a medical college, "if 
you think about chemistry, you are not fit to practice medi- 
cine. " 

In those days the writer of this book was not very well 
dressed. Did not have money to do much dressing and feed 
a family of little children. And although we felt that he 
was not right, } T et we also felt that we had no right to antag- 
onize his assertions to his face. 

(Perhaps it was because this professor had on a span new 
suit of blue and we were wearing an old suit taken from a 
son of the Emerald Isle as a payment for the catching of a 
tape worm. And this countryman of ours had the suit 
from a Hebrew who was in the ready-made-clothing business. 
Oh, there is a wonderful sight of difference in the way one is 
dressed, about having confidence in one's self. But it is an 
erroneous saying that "being well dressed gives one a tran- 
quillity of mind that religion is powerless to bestow. " That 
is not so. If one has a true dependence in an overruling 
power and a constant faith in God and His Son, there is no 
more care for what one wears than there is for the thought 
of one of Armour's dead hogs. The being illy dressed 
makes one feel badly until, in our minds, we rise abo\e 
dress. ) 

If we should meet this quondam professor of medicine to- 
day, we should not bother our head to talk with him. We 

53 



54 



The Teeth. 



now know that his knowledge did not get ud into his head, 
but was passed off before it ascended. 

In short, if one should ask us our opinion of this pro- 
fessor we should say he was unthinking. He was like the 
wreckers of Barnegat, bobbing his light up and down to 
catch the ignorant. 




Fig. 6. 
Showing cow's teeth fed on grass and grain. 

Does it make any difference what we eat ? 

We desire you to give this matter a little thought. 

Here is a cut showing the teeth of a cow fed on healthy and 
sound grass and grain. You see that the teeth are all even 
and of a proportionate size without any blemishes in them. 
These teeth are smooth and nice and one can almost smell 
the fresh breath as the teeth are seen. 

This engraving was taken for John Burdell, who died long 
ago, in the city of New York. Burdell was a scholar, and 
his works live after him. His profession was dentistry. 

Here is another cut showing the condition of a cow which 
was fed on the " still slops " of the cny. How do } T ou like 
these teeth ? You see the enamel of the teeth is all de- 
stro}*ed and there is one tooth gone. The bones have also 
suffered, and the alveolar process is decaying. 

Wonder who ate the meat of that dead cow. Where the 
teeth were decayed, the flesh was also in an inferior con- 
dition. 



The Teeth. 55 



The black spots which 3-011 see, are spots showing the decay 
as it had commenced and would soon have been more rotten 
than it was, if the butcher had not stepped in and prevented. 

Mr. Burdell found that all of the cows fed on these slops 
were diseased in the teeth. 




Fig. 7. 
Showing condition of teeth of cows fed on " still slops." 

Let us ask 3-011 a question. Do you think it makes any 
difference what you eat ? 

Do you think 3-011 can digest all the swill that an3^ of the 
boarding-house keepers ma3 r get up for 3-ou and 3-et jou. ma3 r 
remain perfectly healtli3 r ? We tell 3-011 it is impossible for 
3 7 ou to do this thing. 

The food 3 r ou eat has an influence on 3 T ou. You may be a 
saint* If 3'ou eat the hog 3 T ou may be sure that the natural 
law will give 3-011 a return for that eating of the hog and you 
will be diseased. 

If you drink coffee 3^011 will suffer as sure as you live. 

Figure 8 is another cut showing the various stages of 
deca3 r . 

We see the teeth as the3 T are in the jaw. 

At 2 we see the decay on the outside of the tooth and we 
can see an internal ulcer at the root of the tooth. There are 
also ulcers at the roots of 5, 6, 8 and 9. 2 and 9 are the 
worst. 3 is a healthy tooth. 7 is just commencing to de- 
cay; so is 4. 5 is on the wa3 T to become a bad tooth. 

Kindly note that this is not a fancy picture. It is made 



56 



The Teeth. 



from life, and the person died from some other disease than 
the toothache. 

But it is a condition that is prevalent in thousands of 
people to-day. 




Fig. 8. 



Figure 8 shows the condition of teeth in their various stages of 
decay. In i there is a small cavity and also a spot to show where 
there is a corresponding commencing congestion at the root of 
the tooth. The ulceration of the roots (or the fangs of the teeth, 
as they are sometimes called) is well shown in 2, 5, 6,8 and 9. 
This figure also shows the conditions which we have often as- 
serted to be the fact, viz.: that the teeth decay at the roots before 
they show their decay on the outside of the teeth. 



The Teeth. 57 



There is more unhappiness, more anguish and more solid 
agony than one can estimate. 

There are more dentists and things called dentists than 
anything else except doctors. 

Do the}' do any good ? 

Well, that depends on what you call good. 

Why should one get in this condition ? 

Our idea is that you ought to study some for yourself and 
for your children and not allow the common laws of nature 
to be so ill} r understood. 

Why should you not understand the laws of your being ? 

And what is the use of your allowing these laws to be in 
obscurity, when by a little exertion you could find them out 
and haA r e these laws serve to give you a happy and con- 
tented old age ? 

Think of this for a moment. 

This medical professor said it did not matter what we ate, 
as digestion was a "physiological law." Thousands of 
doctors will tell you the same nonsense to-day. 

But the cow that had to eat the "still slops " said by her 
teeth that this medical professor was a liar. 

The teeth do not decay for nothing. There is a cause for 
that decay. 

You have thirty-two teeth in your head (or you will 
have when you get them all. The four wisdom teeth do not 
always come through at the age of twenty-one), and do you 
not think it would be better for you take care of those teeth 
to-day than to wait until they have begun to decay ? Now 
you are a young lady with your future before you. Do you 
not think there is much more sense in your learning about 
those teeth than in crochetting or in playing euchre ? 

Oh, the anguish and the wretchedness you can prevent by 
understanding these laws of eating. 

Take a moment to think why these teeth decay. 

The cow's teeth decayed, (1) because there was not suffi- 
cient tooth nourishment, and (2) because the teeth of the cow 
had come in contact with dead blood corpuscles. 

Very well. You have been to school and you can see 



58 



The Teeth. 




Fig. 9. 

"Keep Your Teeth Clean." 

BRANCHES OF FIFTH NERVE. 

A. Ophthalmic division. — 1. Frontal. 2. Nasal and long ciliary. 3. Branches to 
ciliary ganglion. 

B. Superior maxillary division. — 4. Orbital. 5. Sphenopalatine (Meckel's) gan- 
glion. 6. Posterior dental. 7-8. Anterior dental. 9. Infra-orbital. 

C. Inferior maxillary division. — 10. Auriculo-temporal. 11. Masseteric. 12. 
Deep temporal. 13. Pterygoid. 14. Buccal to buccinator, etc. 15. Gustatory. 
16. Mylo-hyoid branch. 17. Inferior dental. 18. Mental. 

This cut shows the connections with the various nerves which are connected with 
the teeth. By a little reflection you will see that any battery which would commence 
in the teeth would affect all the brain in general as well as the eyes, the ears and the 
face in particular. It also shows how the amalgam filling, when it gets to working as a 
battery, will cause the twitching and the jerking of the muscles of the face and the eyes. 
This is seen in various ways and has been experienced by thousands of victims. When 
the dentist assures you that the quicksilver filling is all right, you can retain your pres- 
ence of mind and say nothing. But you will know, if you think and take the testimony 
of other victims who have been duped and are the sufferers, that when the dentist ut- 
ters this assertion he is guilty of one of the meanest of falsehoods which he could utter. 



The Teeth. 



59 



what is the reason why we have the condition of the teeth 
shown in figure 8. 

First, there is not sufficient tooth material. 

Second, there are particles of blood made from a food 
which is of the same nature as the still slops of the city-fed 
cow. And this slop makes blood clots in the arteries, and 
produces ulceration. 

Do you desire to have good blood ? To continue to have 
good teeth ? 

The blood must continually be in good order. 

To eat good food, such as will nourish the bod}- , is one of 
the essentials of good teeth. 

Are you careless about your personal appearance and do 
not care whether }X)u have good teeth or not ? Then eat 
everything that is in your way, and suck the sweet candies, 
the cakes, the tea and the coffee, and we will promise you 
that with all the care you may take of the teeth and all the 
" Sozodont " and the other fraudulent tooth powders 3-0 u 
may squander money for, you will have the condition of teeth 
shown in cut 8 or worse. One other idea that the writer de- 
sires to impress upon you is the fact that all the hahing 
powders, without any exception, are destroyers of tooth 
material. 




Fig. 10. 
Tartar on teeth. 




Fig. 11. 
Tartar removed. 



Consider the condition of the teeth shown at 2, 5 and 9, 
and, also, think of the corresponding condition of the blood 
of the body. 

What do you think caused that condition of the roots of 
the teeth ? 



60 The Teetj 



We can tell you. 

Filth. 

Internal filth. 

The blood was not in good order, and, in some portions of 
the bod}', blood corpuscles died and became burdens to the 
living corpuscles. 

At the roots of the teeth some of these blood corpuscles 
clogged and prevented the good or living blood from having 
a complete circulation. Dead blood corpuscles. Obstruction. 
Putrefaction followed and the condition which is shown to 
3*ou came on, and the teeth decay and the jaw is affected 
while the entire alveolar process is aching because of this 
stagnation of the blood. It does not matter where that 
filth may be. You niay take a glass of soda water. 

What is that soda water made of ? 

Filth. 

All the pop, ginger ale, "cool drinks," coffee, tea, choco- 
late, cocoa shells and the whole category' of stuff that is 
swilled down one's throat in summer, are siniply vile. 

They make degraded blood. This material can not, by any 
possible change, make good blood. 

If there is not good blood there will be no sound tooth 
material, and it is only a question of time when these teeth 
go to decay. 

Take another very common occurrence. Tartar on the 
teeth. What makes it ? 

The food one eats has as much to do with this condition 
as any one thing, although the medicine which is commonly 
given has a great deal of effect on the teeth. 

Eating candy, drinking warm drinks, especially sweet- 
ened coffee and tea, are direct producers of the tartar. 

The saliva is vitiated and tartar is deposited. 

When you goto the dentist he will very glibly talk to you of 
' ' salivary calculus, " for when one gets into a conversation with 
one of these professional people the}* have a technical name 
and the technical name for tartar is ' < salivary calculus, " and he 
will tell you that it is " composed of earth}* salts and animal 
matter. " But there are quite a number of differing kinds of 



The Teeth. 61 



tartar and none of the kinds are alike in composition and 
none of them are to be desired. 

One of the causes ma}- arise from keeping the mouth open. 
But the main reason comes from the fact that the food eaten 
is not digested and the saliva is not used up in chewing the 
food properly. 



Fig. 12. 

Showing roots being gradually uncovered from various causes, 
i. e.\ hot coffee and tea, candy, sweets, and "cool drinks." 

The saliva joins with the remains of a meal and tartar is 
formed and sticks to the teeth. When once there is a lodg- 
ment of tartar it soon accumulates. 

Some kinds of tartar are not so bad as some others, but 
there is no kind of tartar beneficial to the teeth. 

The sweets of the candies are one of the causes of the 
formation of tartar. These sweets soften the enamel of the 
tooth and leave it in an enfeebled condition which is favor- 
able to the formation of tartar. 

We sincerely believe that breathing through the mouth has 
a deleterious effect on the teeth, but we do not think it is of 
so much real injury to the teeth as the substances eaten. 
And } r ou will notice that in all cases of tartar the saliva is 
affected before there is any deposition of tartar. In other 



62 The Teeth. 



words, the saliva being vitiated by improper food is the first 
cause of the tartar. 

While you are young this tartar ma}' be removed and the 
teeth not suffer much, but as you get older this tartar is of 
more detriment and is more pernicious to the teeth. 

It should be taken off carefully and the teeth taken care 
of until the hardness is again restored. 

If, at this time you care less of what you eat, you may be 
sure this condition of tartar will reappear to show you the 
results of certain kinds of food. 

We think what you eat to be of more importance than 
what you may wear. 

Consider a moment. 

If what you may eat affects the teeth, do you not think 
what you may eat will also affect the other parts of the 
body ? 

We assure you that every particle that is put into your 
mouth is of more real importance to you in your life 
on this earth than anything that may be said about you or 
yours. 

When the selected grains, the fruits and vegetables which 
are grown from the soil, are eaten, you are quite sure you 
have the basis of a sound body. 

The moment the meats and fats of dead animals are 
mixed up in the pastries which may taste good, but are 
realty hurtful, and you change the vegetables for these un- 
certain compounds, you are not sure of what your body is 
composed. 

If your bod} 7 is diseased, you may rest assured your mind 
is likely to be impaired. 

If you have a diseased body and an impaired mind, are 
you going to be of much value to yourself or to anyone else ? 

Do not take this as a scolding, but think it over for your 
own good. 

We desire you to be benefited and to be perfectly healthy 
and happy. 

From what we have already written it will be seen that the 
teeth commence to decay from the inside, and the cause of 



The -Teeth. 63 



that inside decay lies in the lack of sufficient nourishment for 
the tooth. 

This tooth nourishment should come from oatmeal, cracked 
wheat, graham bread, nuts of all kinds, acorns; and a 
thorough and total avoidance of candies, sugar, pastries, 
coffee, tea, and cocoa or chocolate. 

But if this does not reach you in time to save } r our teeth, 
and the cavities are alread} r in your teeth, the best method of 
preserving is to fill them. 

If the shell only is left and the decay is extended through 
chemically, that is, if the chemical effect of food, drink, and 
the acids of the mouth has supplemented the decay from 
the inside, then it is best to have the tooth extracted. Have 
courage to have it cut around carefully and have it pulled. 

If only a little decayed, have it filled as early as practicable. 

The fillings which are most common are gold and the 
amalgam. 

Gold is the best filling. "Soft fillings," so called, are 
soon out and have to be replaced. 

The amalgam filling is composed of mercury (commonly 
known as quicksilver), and is mixed with tin, copper, cad- 
mium, and other metals, which, when mixed, form the basis 
of a galvanic battery, which is always in order as long as 
there are any fluids in the mouth. 

The dentist common^ calls this a "silver filling," but 
when he calls this a silver filling, he knows very well that he 
is presuming on your ignorance and is going to swindle you 
in the matter of your tooth filling. 

We should understand by the term " silver, " that it is a 
metal which is like our silver dollar. But such is not the 
fact, and the dentist knows you will be deceived by this, for 
there will not be one particle of the silver in this filling 
which he calls silver, but there will be quicksilver, which is 
of a different nature, and a different mineral altogether. 

This filling of this common amalgam is of the most 
dangerous character to the mouth and to the whole bod}'. 

It destroys the eyes; destroys the ears; destroys the intel- 
lect and renders the one who has this unfortunate filling in 



64 The Teeth. 



the teeth a victim to the action of a slow decay, which has to 
be seen to be appreciated. 

It is one of the common causes of loss of memory, loss 
of the faculty of thinking clearl}' on any subject, and of the 
feeling of despair or downhearted ness, that has ever been in- 
vented by any person on the earth. We assure you that we 
have seen suicides made from the presence of this filling. 

We have seen, while this book is in preparation, a man, a 
physician, having these fillings in the teeth, have a swelling 
in the throat, and the doctors did not know what was the 
matter, and an old woman of a doctor called it a cancer, and 
the man died from the effect of this amalgam filling which 
he had worn some eight or ten years. 

It does not do its work in a moment. The filling will get 
settled and then the system may resist the encroachments of 
this battery for many years, but the end will come and then 
the brain will be ruined. 

There is no doubt but the great majority of dentists know 
of these facts in the main, but the desire to make a dollar is 
too strong for their honesty, and they are in the habit of 
uttering these deceitful lies so that it comes out of their 
mouth before they can think of the effect of their falsehoods. 

This battery is made in the teeth, but the effect is not con- 
fined to the teeth by any means. The current is sent to all 
parts of the body and often the young lady will think 'there 
is a slight deafness coming on, which is the result of this cur- 
rent from the teeth. 

The eyes become weak and there is such a feeling of des- 
pondency that it is hard to overcome it. And we think 
we know of a lovely girl who threw herself in a well 
for no other cause than the melanchoty which came from the 
presence of this poison and electrical filling in her teeth. 
She was not killed b} T her attempt to commit suicide, and 
afterwards as her consulting plrysician we had these amal- 
gam fillings removed, and then she slowly recovered. 

The current begins in the teeth but it is sent into all parts 
of the brain. From the brain this current affects the spinal 
cord, and there is often a weakness which the doctor who 



The Teeth. 65 



does not look at the cause of things, attributes to what he 
has been taught in his school to think is "female disease," 
and the young lady is subjected to a brutal treatment for a 
disease which there was no sign of and which the doctor 
should have learned the nature of before he left school. 

Unfortunately, the age is one of dishonesty, and thus the 
young lady should learn of these facts for herself and shun 
the dictates and the pompous assertions of the doctors and 
the dentists. Be at once aware that when the dentist is tell- 
ing you of the "silver filling," he is trying to deceive you, 
and when he is allowed to place this filling in your mouth, he 
will place something in the mouth which will ruin the rest of 
the teeth while it may stop up a cavity at the present. 

But, even as a filling for the cavity in the tooth, it is not 
really of benefit. The amalgam slowly hardens after it is 
mixed, and while it cools, it shrinks, then this will leave a 
hollow place around the amalgam filling and the tooth will 
not be filled. The places which will be left around the filling 
and between the tooth and the filling, will fill up with the 
food and the acids of the mouth, and there will be a horrible 
breath arising from this tooth filling which will often make 
the young lady to wish she had no teeth whatever. And the 
worst of it will be when she tries this and that and there will 
nothing do her any good for her bad breath, and finally, she 
will lose all the teeth on that side of her jaw. 

We assure you this is a part of the fact, but we could not 
tell you all of the mischief which these fillings do nor all of 
the injury which are resulting from these fillings, if we 
should attempt to place this book full of statements. 

Should you have been so unfortunate as to have lost some 
of your teeth and be obliged to wear a plate of some kind, 
we caution you against wearing the plate which is said to be 
of the common red rubber. 

It is also called "Vulcanite, " but goes by the name of 
"red rubber " almost wholly. This so-called < « red rubber " 
is not red rubber at all. This compound is composed of : 
quicksilver. 24 parts; sulphur, 36 parts; rubber, 40 parts. The 
quicksilver and the sulphur form the bi-sulphuret of mercury, 



66 The Teeth. 



and this poisonous compound is at once ruinous to the mouth, 
the teeth and the general health. 

How man}*, many women we have seen killed and how 
many invalids we have known who were invalids from the 
wearing of this villainous plate which looks so harmless. 

Do not, under any circumstances, allow yourself to have a 
red rubber plate. Be content to go without any plate until 
you can get to an honest dentist who can make you a gold 
plate. Or have a black rubber, which is not so totally offen- 
sive to your health and so ruinous to the brain as this bi-sul- 
phurous mixture which is so common and so filthy. 

You may rest assured of one thing which you will find of 
much advantage in all of your dealings with the dentists. 
That is, that owing to their education, to their habits of 
training to get a dollar from their patrons, they will not tell 
you the exact truth in relation to the matters which concern 
their profession. They take you for game, to get and to 
hold, and the fine honor which prompts one "to do to an- 
other as one would that others should do unto them " is al- 
most unknown among the dental fraternity. There are some 
exceptions, but they are few, and when you find one that will 
tell you the truth, he should be prized. 

This reminds us that there is no profession which is so lu- 
crative and so readily open to the young ladies at the present, 
as the dental profession. When you enter this branch, do it 
with the understanding that you are going to do good as well 
as to earn a livelihood. 

A lady dentist is not uncommon, but we think the men are 
usually afraid of her, and if they can get her to join their 
society and keep up her prices so that they can cut under her 
in the way of work, the}* will do it every time. 

Get your diploma and then start out for your own self and 
do not allow any one to dominate over you. 

It demands some skill, but is essentially a lady's profes- 
sion. There is room at the present for, at the least, five 
thousand dentists to take the place of these villains who are 
robbing the people with their amalgam fillings and these 
villainous bi-sulphurous plates which they style red rubber. 



The Teeth. 67 



We hope this will set you to thinking there is something 
for you to do in this world and to fill your niche with credit 
to yourself and good to the poor, ignorant young persons 
who may intrust themselves to your care. 

So shall you be blessed. 

The teeth should be cleaned after every meal and upon 
rising, as well as when going to bed. 

Do not use a wooden toothpick under any circumstances, 
as the splinters from this wood will get into the flesh and 
cause inflammation of the gums. Use a quill toothpick, if 
you need to use any. But if the teeth are far enough apart 
to get a stout floss thread between the teeth and draw this 
thread between the teeth to clean out anything left there 
from the meals, it will be better than any toothpick what- 
ever. 

The common tooth washes are destructive to the teeth and 
should be avoided. Even charcoal, which is said to be the 
best of all the powders for the teeth, is an abomination to 
the enamel and should only be used when absolutely neces- 
sary. 

We think a brush, which has a trifle of soap on it, and 
clean soft water, are enough to take out all of the bacteria 
from the mouth, as well as to take off all the outside cover- 
ing which should be taken off at one time. If there is care 
taken as to what is eaten there will soon come the whitest of 
teeth which are tough and solid. Keep the teeth and the 
body well supplied with tooth nourishment in the shape of 
coarse food and nuts, and keep the teeth clean by a soft 
brush and we can assure you that you will have sound teeth 
for all of your natural life. 



CHAPTEE VII. 
THE MENSES. 

About the age of twelve or fourteen, according to the pre- 
cocity and condition of the girl, there conies a discharge 
which is commonly called the "menses," or the courses, or 
the flow. 

This is also called a " show," " regular," and among some 
of the people who make a great effort to be chary of speech, 
they designate it by the name of " company. " 

Briefly, this discharge is a provision of nature to cany off 
the excess of blood which, possibly, will be used up by and 
by in the sustenance of a growing child. 

It is certain this discharge will not and does not occur if 
there is no surplus of blood or of something which should 
be discharged from the system. 

We may compare this discharge to an overflow of the ani- 
mal economy, which occurs at regular intervals and leaves 
the woman clean and pure in her bod}-. 

This should be the case. But, unfortunate^ for the 
woman, there have been so many theories, that no girl who 
does not have this discharge in some prescribed quantity, is 
safe from the meddling effects of the fond mother and the 
malicious, ignorant doctor, that it is seldom a girl is safe 
during the commencing period of the menses. We say 
" malicious," because there is usually no need of any inter- 
ference. But the doctor, to earn his fee, and because he 
does not know any better, will give a parcel of drugs, and 
advise some poison stuff to be taken into the body which is 
detrimental to the bod}', when there should be none of 
these things placed in the stomach to force or to drive out 
a discharge which, possibh T , is not there. 

In other words, there should be no forcing medicines 
given to any girl to force this discharge when it is possible 
there is no excess of blood in the system. 

Take for example. If you have a glass which is half full 



The Menses. 69 



it would not run over if there was quite a little more 
poured into it. But if the glass were filled with water and 
only a very small quantit}^ were poured into it there would 
be a running over. So we may explain the discharge which 
comes on with a great degree of regularit}', if the woman is 
in good health, but which is stopped if there are any ob- 
structions which prevent the excess of blood in the body. 

For instance : If there are worms in the body there will 
not be as much discharge into the vagina as there would be 
if there were no worms. 

This is also seen; if there is any open sore on the surface 
of the body. While this sore lasts, there will be not so 
much of his menstrual discharge as if there were no open sore 
on the body. 

So, if the young lady takes cold at this time of the dis- 
charge, the discharge is liable to be obstructed by this cold 
condition of the system and the discharge will be scanty. It 
is at this critical period where so mairy young ladies are 
ruined by taking medicine to regulate a function of nature 
which nature knows better how to regulate and to manage 
than the doctors or the persons who are always minding other 
people's business. 

This may be said to be so literally true that we assert that 
any 3 r oung lady who is in her sound mind should never have 
any medicine for the stoppage of this discharge. Never. 

If this discharge stops at some time, there is some reason for 
this discharge, there will be some reason for its stopping. 
Ascertain this cause of its cessation. 

If there is a cold in the system, clear out the cold. 

If there are worms, send the worms out of the bocty. If 
there is too much exercise or too much mental exertion, it is 
quite certain there will be a scanty discharge ; while if there 
has been some heavy lifting, it is also quite possible there 
will be an excess or an overflow from some strain, or, possibly, 
from some actual rupture of some tender blood vessel in the 
uterus. These excessive flows are called "flooding"; also 
called " menorrhagia. " When there is no discharge from 
any cause, it is called "amenorrhea." 




Fig. 13. 

Reproductive Organs of Female. Unimpregnated Uterus and Append- 
ages, a. Inner membrane, d. Os uteri, c. Upper part of vagina, f. Round 
ligament, g. Fallopian tube. //. Fimbriated extremity, k. Lining of vagina. 



(70) 



The Menses. 71 



Perhaps there has been no state which has been so prolific 
of evil to the growing girl as this state of non-menstruation. 
The mother thinking this ' < flow " must be brought about at any 
hazard, goes to the doctor and gets some forcing medicine, 
and thus she poisons the child she tries to help. She thinks 
if this discharge is once started all the wheels of life will go 
smoothly. But the fact is, that this is not the proper way to 
look at the condition of menstruation. Menstruation is not 
the act of a motor ; it is the result of an excess in the system, 
and if there is no excess there, there would not be any dis- 
charge to be expelled. 

There are, at present, two theories to account for the 
menstrual discharge. The first one is by Pfluger, who asserts 
that the uterus is being prepared for the reception of the 
ovum (or egg), and when this egg is brought from the ovary 
to the uterus there will be a fresh surface and a membrane 
which will be read} 7- to have sustenance to the egg, in case 
there is any pregnancy. This view would receive confirmation 
from the fact that there is always the discharge before the 
ovum is ready to leave the ovary. When the menses are 
over then the egg comes into the uterus and sta} r s there for 
some six to twelve days. 

The other theory is that of Reichert who thinks there is a 
sympathetic condition of the lining of the uterus and that 
when the ovum is ready to be discharged there is a corre- 
sponding change in the mucous membrane of the uterus and 
when the ovum comes into the uterus and is not impregnated 
there is a degeneracy of this lining rnembrance of the uterus, 
and this degenerate lining of the mucous membrane is dis- 
charged with the amount of blood which is called the 
menstrual discharge. 

There are cases of women in perfect health who never 
menstruated and } T et have borne children. Instances of this 
kind are rare, but are of sufficient frequency to show that 
such a state can exist with perfect health. If a girl is in 
perfect health and does not menstruate, there is no call for 
medicine. The body is well. Let it alone. 

Painful menstruation is often caused by the mouth of the 



72 The Menses. 



womb being contracted, and sometimes from the congested 
and contracted state of the fallopian tubes. 

This may be brought about by cold ; by corsets ; by im- 
proper food, and from lack of proper exercise. The corset 
is the most frequent cause of painful menstruation. This 
steel prison holds the bowels in such a shape that there is 
constipation, and then the water} 7 parts of the feces are car- 
ried into the general circulation. The womb absorbs this 
material which should pass off out of the bowels, and the re- 
tained material causes the menses to be painful, and also of a 
dark color, and very offensive. The womb is congested with 
these dead materials. It is in a cold state. The habit of retain- 
ing the urine is also another reason of there being foul ma- 
terials in the womb. When the menstrual discharge takes 
place, nature, or the vital force, endeavors to expel these foul 
elements which are to be passed off from the body, and this 
effort causes the contraction of the uterus and the consequent 
pain as well as the villainous smell which accompanies the 
discharge. 

This condition of things will soon be changed if the 
young lady who is now a victim to ignorance, will wear low- 
heeled shoes, dress warmly and take a walk each day as soon 
as it is light enough to see. We have seen this tried and we 
can say it is better than all the medicine which the doctors 
have in their drug stores. The habit of wearing tight and 
too small shoes which do not fit the foot is another reason 
why there is painful menstruation. All the blood goes from 
the heart to the extremities. When this blood from the heart 
reaches the feet and finds the feet and the capillaries so that 
it can not get through into the veins, there is some of the 
blood corpuscles which die and then there are some of these 
corpuscles which must be carried off out of the system. 
These dead and now cold blood corpuscles are carried back 
into the kidneys or into the general circulation and find 
themselves in the kidneys and thus the kidneys are clogged ; 
there is some obstruction and the back aches with an ache 
that is almost unbearable. If, in this condition, the young 
ladj' is so unfortunate as to take some preparation of opium 



The Menses. 73 



or laudanum, she will have a serious case of heart trouble, 
or some derangement of the digestive tract which is liable 
to last her as long as she lives. 

If this condition is present with the young miss we will 
stop and tell her how to get out of it and not hurt the 
body. 

The feet have been cramped and as these dead corpuscles 
are from the feet and the feet are the outposts of the body, 
so to speak, the blood corpuscles have been killed in the feet 
and passed up as dead blood corpuscles and are detained in 
the uterus. The habit of soaking the feet in warm water is 
one of the best things to do in such cases, since it sets these 
dead blood corpuscles free again, and restores the circulation. 
Then take some of the warming and stimulating infusions 
which are well known and commonly used among the well- 
informed mothers, as pennyroyal, mayweed, motherwort, or 
spearmint with ginger. These bland remedies will produce 
a perspiration and so induce the flow of the amount which 
should be expelled. In any ordinary amount these infusions 
can not hurt the body of the young lady. A rest in a warm 
place should be considered one of the most imperative of con- 
ditions. Keep the entire body warm and allow no chill as 
long as there is any flow. If any constipation use copious 
injections of warm water to the bowels. Make them large. 
Say two to four quarts and repeat them every six hours if 
the parts are not relaxed. Resume the daily quick cold 
bath when the flow is over, and we can soon promise immu- 
nity from all this unnecessary pain during the menstrual 
period. One of the methods by which the doctor has to 
obviate what is called " painful menstruation, " is to examine 
the girl with a speculum and to force the mouth of the womb 
open with the end of a steel which he calls a "sound." 
This is a steel instrument about a foot long and smooth and 
rather pointed and it is quite effectual in opening the mouth 
of the womb so there is no more pain, but it also, in many 
cases, destro} T s the abilit}' of having children and also 
destroys much of the powers of life. Nature will open the 
womb a?l right if you will give her an opportunity to have 



74 The Menses. 



some assistance or to keep her from being clogged up with 
dead blood coi-j)uscles. 

Another great cause of so much painful menstruation, is 
from the fact that the food is wrong and causes constipation ; 
and also from the fact of these little shoes with high heels being 
worn which cramp the feet into a mass of non-circulating 
medium, and throw the body forward out of its proper erect 
position. This will be plainer to you when you consider that 
the feet are the farthest away from the heart, and the warm 
blood comes from the heart and goes to all parts of the body 
and then returns to the heart and to the lungs again for what 
is called oxygenation and purification. Now, if on the way 
to the heart in any place that blood is stopped, some of this 
stopped and delayed blood will die, and instead of their be- 
ing live blood corpuscles, there will be dead blood corpuscles. 
These dead blood corpuscles are really enemies to the live 
body and must be carried off out of the body before the 
body can be in good order again to do anything as it should 
be done. So there is an effort to carry off these dead par- 
ticles, and there is some effort on the part of the vital 
force which is in the body to carry off these dead blood cor- 
puscles. This effort is called a fever. While this effort, 
which is called a fever, is taking place, there are some of the 
other corpuscles which are used up in the endeavor to cany off 
these dead corpuscles, and so there are two sets of dead blood 
corpuscles, one set which has been killed by the cold, or com- 
pression, and the others which are dead through exhaustion. 
These dead blood corpuscles are some of the things and 
some of the material which are carried off out of the system 
by what is called the menstrual discharge. And it is this 
theory which makes the mother so anxious when her daughter 
is not regular with the monthly discharge. 

This is the correct view to take of the importance of the 
discharge when this discharge is solely for the purpose of 
carrying off all filthy and dead material in the body. 

But it is not the correct thing to think of in some other 
cases where there is some delay in producing this discharge, 
when nature is using up this discharge in some other locality 



The Menses. 75 



of the body. In other words, if the girl is exhausted by 
her studies, she will use up all the surplus blood and there 
will be none of this surplus to be carried off out of the body. 

But when there is an excess there will be some way for 
nature to be rid of it. And it is likely at that time to be 
carried off through the uterus. This will be, when there is 
much of a flow, called a "profuse discharge." It is one of 
the conditions which certainly does not need so much medi- 
cine as it does the regulating of the system so as to see that 
the body is to be free from any of the dead blood corpuscles 
which we have spoken of. We think these dead blood cor- 
puscles are, in a great measure, produced by the conditions 
which we have just mentioned, — cold, and cramped feet. 

The feet are pinched by the common-senseless shoes and 
so the blood corpuscles die and remain in the system. 

They go to the heart, and nature, or the vital force, sends 
them to some place to be thrown out of the body. Then, 
when the time comes for the menstrual discharge there will 
be some obstruction and the flow will not progress and the 
womb will be congested or cooled from the presence of these 
dead blood corpuscles and while nature is making this effort 
to carry off this effete matter there will come some message 
from the uterus to the effect that the womb will not open and 
there is what is called a pain. 

A pain is a telegraph message from some part .to the effect 
that there is some obstruction in that place. 

It is at this point where so many of the young ladies of 
the present day receive their death blow to all hopes of a 
future health and a career of future happiness. 

The doctor is seen for this "painful menstruation," which 
comes from the presence of dead blood corpuscles, and this 
doctor gives something to lull the pain ; but he does not give 
you any idea of what makes this condition of painful men- 
struation and he does not really do any good for the next 
time ; in fact this doctor really makes the next time worse. 

With his poisons he will make the condition of the body 
worse by killing more of these important blood corpuscles. 

In the first place there was a pain which was a message 



76 The Menses. 



from the parts to the effect that there was some obstruction 
to the flow, because there were dead blood corpuscles at the 
mouth of the womb aud in fact in all the womb, and these 
dead blood corpuscles were obstructing the flow. 

These dead blood corpuscles were once alive and were 
killed in the presence of the too-tight shoe which did not 
give the blood a chance to circulate in the foot and so it died 
in the foot. Then it was dead. The feet were cold and so 
the blood corpuscles were unable to go back to the heart of 
themselves and had to be carried back. Then there was an 
effort on the part of nature to carry them back and this ef- 
fort was called a fever, and the doctor did not know what a 
fever was and so killed down the vital force with aconite or 
with belladonna, and when the discharge came on there 
would be an amount of pain which was unbearable. 

The doctor, instead of thinking out this matter and realiz- 
ing the exact cause of this painful menstruation, gives a 
poison which makes more of these dead blood corpuscles and 
so makes the body in a worse condition than it was in the 
first place. The next time there would be more of these 
dead blood corpuscles and the womb would be in a more 
congested state than it was before and so there would be 
more pain. 

The proper way is to relax the parts, and, as we have seen, 
this is best done by soaking the feet and by the use of warm 
infusions which will tend to keep the blood in good circula- 
tion. When this discharge is over, the time is come to pre- 
pare for the next period, and this is best done by having 
wide, comfortable shoes, and by warm stockings, and by all 
the dress that is necessary to keep all the parts thoroughly 
warm and from any changes of atmosphere. For this rea- 
son we say, in the winter have all the clothes, especially the 
underwear, closed up so there will be no chance to have any 
cold air strike the lower part of the bowels while out of 
doors. The great cause of what are called "growths" and 
conditions of the womb by which there is so much of misery 
and there is so much sickness among women, and there is so 
prevalent a form of what is called "female disease " is pro- 



The Menses. 77 



cluced from this cause of dead blood corpuscles. And these 
dead blood corpuscles come in a large majority of cases from 
tight shoes, because these tight shoes do not allow the free 
circulation of blood. Also from cold to the bowels, from 
insufficient clothing to the lower parts of the bowels. And 
while this cold is supposed to affect especially the womb, 
there will be some of this cold which will be detrimental to 
the intestines as well as to the womb. 

There will be likely to be some trouble with the urine and 
this affection can in many instances be dated from some cold 
to the lower part of the bowels and some dead blood cor- 
puscles which are killed by the action of cold. 

It will be said that in some countries there is none of this 
trouble. This is true. But in all of these nations where 
there is very little of this painful menstruation Uiere is a 
better class of food and there are none of the things which 
are detrimental to the body as are the articles of food and 
drink as we have them in America. These articles which 
are the most useless and the most clogging to the system, 
and which do as much harm to the body as anything else 
are the baking powders, the potatoes, the pork, the tea, the 
coffee and pastry. These articles are truly blood destroyers 
and they are the real prime causes of so much trouble among 
the female part of our nation. 

These mentioned articles of diet can not by any means 
make good blood, and the corpuscles of blood which are 
made from these articles, if the corpuscles can be made 
from these articles (we deny that tea, coffee, baking pow- 
ders can make any blood corpuscles, as there is nothing 
in them to make anything like a blood corpuscle; they are 
killers), and, as a consequence, when there is any chill these 
corpuscles which come from these articles are weak and are 
more readily killed b}^ the cold than the corpuscles which are 
made from bread and from fruits. In other words, we say 
that there is certainly some difference in blood which is made 
from the different kinds of food. And the food which is 
made from the biscuit, the hot bread, the cake and the stuff 
which is on the modern table as food (ham and eggs, for in- 



78 The Menses. 



stance) can not b}* any means make as good food as that 
which is made from good wheat and good oatmeal and rye 
and cornmeal. These grains are the natural food of this 
country, and oysters, pork and the tuberculosis cow are unfit 
food to have when the body is growing up into the shape 
where one wishes to live for a hundred } T ears. 

If this body of ours is to be kept free from pain and from 
all of its aches and distresses there must be some attention 
given to the first beginnings of the life, and not wait until 
the head is ready to drop into the grave with consumption 
before this attention is given. So we return and say, if there 
is to be any opening of the womb, do it by natural metiiods, 
and the great method of nature is to have exercise. The 
daily walk is much better to open any obstructed part of the 
body than any of the operations of cold steel which are just 
now in vogue. Take the daily walk in the morning and 
keep } T ourself properly clad and there will soon be a cessa- 
tion of all painful menstruation. The womb will soon be in 
its place that is daily exercised and kept warm and comfort- 
able. But not alone the womb, but all the other organs of 
the body will be out of place and in a miserable condition 
where they are not taken care of and are chilled so that there 
are more dead blood corpuscles in these organs than there 
are live corpuscles. 

There is no need of iron or wine to force the menses if the 
body is kept in good order. There is no need of any doctor 
to experiment on you if you will only pay attention to the 
natural laws. If you have not already learned of these 
laws, the sooner you pay some attention to them the better 
for 3 T our body, and the better for your mind. 

The basis of a good body is good food and correct habits. 
The next thing in order is to have the body property clad. 
Tight shoes, corsets, constipation, tea and coffee, meats, 
pastry, candies and exposure of the lower parts of the body 
to all the changes of the atmosphere will surely ruin any 
constitution, no matter how well that constitution was put up 
in the first place. The habit of allowing the skirts to drag 
on the lower part of the hips is another of the follies of this 



The Menses. 79 



day. Have all of the weight that is possible over the shoul- 
ders and see that the bowels have good room to do their im- 
portant work. These are important points. They are only 
touched. You are to some extent the chooser whether }^ou 
desire to be well or ill. And upon jour own conduct will 
your body depend. God has given you the body which He 
saw proper for you to have and which will be the best for 
your mind to dwell in. You are the one who will decide 
whether ther e will be a good body or a body which will be 
diseased and filled with pain. We tell jou that if you obe} 7 
the natural laws of life there is much of happiness in this 
world. But if you think all the fashion and all the things 
which society and the stare of fools can give, are compensa- 
tions for the pain which your body can be made to feel, then 
stick to society and throw this book in the fire. If you de- 
sire to be free from all of this common pain and these delu- 
sions which are unhappiness, then we say to you, study out 
the laws of your own being and see where the One who has 
seen and fashioned you before you were born, has shown you 
the right way to live without any pain and without any of 
this misery which is so freely bestowed on those who will 
not obey the laws of nature. Do not think of any single 
rule to go by. Study out these laws and have a clear under- 
standing with nature, so that when anything comes up 
which is foreign to your present knowledge there will be 
law to go by, and you will have the law of being in your 
head, and so j^ou will have something to go by and not 
have to go to a doctor whose business it is to make money 
at your expense. 

Think of these things and ask the God who made you to 
so open the eyes that you can see better than anyone else 
what is good for your body and what you shall do to get rid 
of all the impurities of the body. If you do this, the 
mind will be better and the body will be the house wherein 
you can worship God and feel as if there would never come 
a time when you could not depend on that body to make the 
bread needed for you and the children to eat. 

If you have a good body there is every likelihood there 



80 The Menses. 



will be a sound mind. If your body is diseased there will 
be every probability that the mind will become so weakened 
that you will be a slave to someone else, and so drop into a 
slave's grave. You will never commence any earlier than 
to-day to commence this new life. You know all of your 
failings as well as any one in the world and if you are 
to commence there will be never any better time when you 
can commence to improve this body than the time which is 
called right now. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



YOUR INNER SELF. 



Any day you may choose, you may go along the street 
and see some face which has all the symptoms of disease 
and the peculiar sallow cast which is so disagreeable to the 
eye of one who understands what that sallow look indicates. 

You may also, at the same time, see some face which to 
you is beautiful. The forehead will be broad, large, smooth 
and clear, and the eyes are clear, limpid, full of expression 
and intelligence. 

If you have some thought about you it will naturally oc- 
cur to you to ask yourself why there can be so great a dif- 
ference in the complexions and the countenances of the dif- 
ferent people. 

To explain these differences is the work of this chapter. 

Up to the time of eight or ten years of age there is usually 
a smooth, clear countenance in almost every child. After 
that age there is a muddying of some countenances and a 
further clearing up and a gain of intelligence in the faces of 
some others. 

The muddy countenance denotes, in brief, that the blood 
corpuscles are in a disordered condition. 

The clear countenance denotes that there are certain things 
about the blood that keep everything in the body in the best of 
order. Or, in other words, the blood, which is the life, is in the 
condition which is able to do the best by the body, by keep- 
ing it in good order. The countenance is simply an index 
which God has made so that anyone should never be mis- 
taken about the persons one meets. It is an index of health 
and it is also an index of the character. An index of the 
thought as well as of the habits of the possessor of the 
body that carries such a face. 

The body, then, is the real cause of the style of face 
which meets one on the street. As one keeps the body so is 
F 81 



82 Your Inner Self. 



the face to be. To look nice, is to have this bod}' in the 
best condition. To have the looks of disease, is to have 
some taint of body which the body will impress on the sur- 
face, in spite of all the powders and paints in existence. 

The great thing which tells on the face of early woman- 
hood, or of an adult, sooner than any one thing in life, is 
the lack of perfect sexual control. 

This is said as deliberately as one can say it. We tell 
you that upon your thorough control of the sexual organs 
your face and your intelligence will largely depend. Ma} r 
we say almost wholly depend. Unless one is married, and 
even then, except at the times of desiring children, there 
should be no loss of sexual power. This is emphatically 
true of both sexes. But, as this fact is not understood, and, 
as these people who are engaged in so many good works 
have never allowed their daughters to look at any book bear- 
ing on this subject, the daughters grow up in ignorance, and 
so these sexual wastes occur, and occur far more often than 
any one can readily understand who is not constantly in 
the medical practice and daily witnessing the dire effects of 
this sexual abuse of the body. 

To bring this to your notice is one thing and to tell you 
how to have this perfect control is another thing. We shall 
feel happy if we can aid you to understand this and to have 
the best control of all the different portions of the body. 

It is said that there is much more virtue among the females 
than among the males. We do not think this is true. But 
the girl learns sooner how to control herself from the nature 
of her being, and sooner comes to an understanding of the 
general laws of nature, so that she is sooner emancipated 
from the passions which in some men are only eradicated 
by death. We are sure these' passions can be and should be 
under perfect mental control. 

In girls this passion is followed by a sexual loss and is 
called a loss of nervous force and is accompanied by an ejec- 
tion of fluid which is passed under the name of mucous. 
But this is not the only loss which occurs. There is a 
descent of the womb each time there is any sexual feeling, 



Your Inner Self. 



and each time the womb descends it makes it easier for the 
descent the next time. 

The habit of gratifying this passion is called self abuse. 
This self abuse consists in having some passion until this 
ejection occurs and this loss has taken place. Not alone a 
loss of fluid, which is the best of all fluids of the body, but a 
loss of force which directly draws on the general system, and 
weakens all the body. Where there is the perfect intercourse 
which may take place between the husband and wife there is 
something of a compensation to both parties for their re- 
spective losses, and there is no show of such devastating 
shocks to the nervous system as are seen in the self abuse 
of the unmated. In the perfectly mated parties, the 
female gets the semen of the male on the mouth of the 
womb, and this being absorbed, furnishes a share of 
needed fluids to lubricate the uterus so that the great 
loss, which would be simply destructive if yielded to 
alone, is not so much felt. In the single person there is no 
compensation and the loss is felt directly, and the body, and 
especially the nervous system, suffers in a manner which is 
frightful to witness, although there are very few who know 
of the reasons that cause this destruction of nerve force and 
its attendant mental and bodily weakness. We desire to 
help the reader to overcome the beginnings of this loss and 
so we desire you to look at the plate (Fig. 14) and pay at- 
tention to the arterial system which supplies the organs of 
generation in the female. The arteries are fed or come from 
the arteries in the interior of the body, but when they are to 
supply this part of the body there are special valves which 
open and allow the blood to pour into this system and at 
once there is a filling up of this system (which should be 
unused until marriage) and that condition which is known as 
a "passionate condition" is present, in which there is the 
utmost self-control demanded to overcome this ' ' passionate 
condition" without any loss of nervous force or any of this 
fluid which is used by nature to lubricate the parts and to 
keep them from chafing. If this is seen in its simplicity, 
that is, if one can see this as it is, there will never be any 



84 Your Inner Self. 



case where the woman, who desires to be virtuous, needs to 
be ever overcome by an}' thing which is called "passion," or 
her feelings. If this fact were known and understood, se- 
duction would be impossible. The act of passion is only 
present while this system of arteries is filling these parts 
full of blood, and while these parts are full of blood there is 
passion. There can be no passion unless these parts are 
filled with blood. When there is no blood in these arteries, 
or while there is only very little blood in these parts there is 
no passion and one has a perfect control over all the body. 
When these parts are filled with blood there is the passion 
present, and the more the blood is poured into these parts 
the harder and more turgid the}* become and the more in- 
tensely passionate one becomes, and the sooner this loss of 
nervous force takes place. At the same time, the womb de- 
scends and there is a corresponding weakness that follows 
each act of sexual orgasm or sexual passion. The person 
therefore who is addicted to the habit of self abuse has a 
daily and constant loss of force which is dependent on the 
supply of blood to these arteries which supply these parts, 
viz. : — vaginal walls, the clitoris and the labia, etc. 

More than this, the oftener this act is performed the more 
readily the blood flows into these arteries, and thus one act 
paves the way for another until the body is one mass of 
living waste and heated corpuscles, destructive because of 
the want of compensation from anywhere. The blood is 
heated and the tissues are weak. The mentality becomes 
daily weaker and more imbecile. There is also the lack of 
any permanent satisfaction to the body, and it follows there 
is such a constant sexual unrest that there is something 
lacking in the life of one of these persons who are abusers 
of their own bodies. Their life is one dreamy scene of burn- 
ing passion and destructive waste which shows itself on all 
the body. It would be well if we could think that our own 
children were free from this vice, and that it is only the chil- 
dren of the vile and the vicious who are the parties connected 
with these habits so pernicious and so destructive to the 
human race. But alas ! the fact that comes to our every- 



Your Inner Self. 



da}' knowledge is one which does not admit of any fond idea 
that our own children are guiltless of this error. 

The wisest and the best, the most carefully nurtured as well 
as the street gamins are just as likely to have these feelings, 
and to yield to these feelings is only the yielding of the 
mental to the natural instincts of the animal. 

As long as these arteries are daily filled with blood there 
will be the daily "passion." And to gratify this passion is 
only the natural propensity of the animal nature which God 
has implanted within each body, to be controlled by mental- 
ity. However this gratification comes, except with the 
most full companionship of love, reverence, sanctity, af- 
fection and law, and we may add also, the complete mate- 
ship of the opposite sex, we assert there can be no health in 
the body, and at each gratification there are some particles 
of material which are in themselves dead, and as dead 
materials they are passed off or passed into other 
portions of the body ; and as dead and inert particles they 
are offensive in the highest degree to the rest of the body, 
and while the body is in the state of driving off, or of car- 
rying off, these dead particles, there is what is known as a 
fever. 

The kidne} T s participate in this effort to get rid of these 
effete atoms and so the urine becomes high-colored and thick- 
er than natural. The face assumes a muddy hue and thus 
the condition of the girl who abuses her body is well known 
to any one who can read these symptoms. 

It would be naturally supposed that when one was married, 
or mated, there would be a stop to all of these practices. 
But we have known of women, it would be a misnomer to call 
them ladies, although they often pass for ladies where they 
are not known, who have been so addicted to the habit of 
self abuse that upon their wedding night the} r coaxed their 
husband to use his fingers upon them for an hour before the 
orgasm could be produced, and this passion was followed by 
a hysterical spasm. The fact also remains to all who can read 
the faces on the street, that there are too many of these dead 
countenances amono; the married to allow of all beina; at 



86 Your Inner Self. 



rest among them. We know this by their faces if not from 
their own confessions. But their own confessions are not 
wanting. When we hear a couple sajing that they do not 
want any children, we may know, as reasonably as if we 
saw their daily acts, that they do something to prevent the 
children from appearing. 

This something is not to have perfect sexual intercourse, 
which criminal act is done in many ways, or else the}' are 
abusers of themselves, which is the same thing. The body 
is cheated and destruction follows. If the married woman 
does not have the intercourse perfect, she will lack the needed 
moisture on the womb, and when the orgasm takes place with- 
out this semen on the womb, there is a direct loss of power 
to her without any compensation, which in the shortest 
space of Lime kills her body for sexual enjoyment. She be- 
comes absolutely filled with dead and offensive material 
which nature tries to send out of the body. She is as bad 
as when she abused herself and the punishment comes as 
swiftly, in the shape of " female weakness " and of "womb 
disease" which are so common all over the civilized 
world. As for the man who is guilty of this practice, we 
can learn what God thought of it by reading the history of 
" Onan. " God cursed him and placed him among the dead 
at once. 

To-day God piaces these Onanites among the dead, and we 
have an abundance of evidence to this effect when we look 
around us and see the persons who are dead in mind and 
still apparently exist in the flesh of some rotten body. Of 
course it is a shame to speak of these things ; but what 
shall we do ? 

Not so long ago we saw a minister who declared he did not 
want any more children and that when his wife did not 
"come around " he gave her an injection of warm water so 
as to bring her "around." The woman was, no doubt, 
"brought around," as they had no children. This minister, 
a regular priest in the Episcopal church, was sore eyed and 
his throat was continually sore. But when this writer, in the 
humility of reverence to the powers that be and full of per- 



Your Inner Self. 87 



sonal respect to this particular man, asked him if that was 
not murder, this priest said there was "no life there. " 

After a time this man saw his error, but it was too late, 
and he went down to death in his prime of life. The woman 
narrowly escaped with her life. We mention this fact, and 
might bring up a thousand like it from our own personal ob- 
servation, to show that the loss of this nervous force is one 
of the things which is ruining the civilized world to-day. It 
may be said that this passion is natural and should be grati- 
fied, and as all the animals are gratified so should the human 
animal. This is an assertion which is sometimes made 
among the persons who are unacquainted with the habits of 
animals and are perfectly ignorant of the physiological ef- 
fects of this sexual loss to the body. The animal allows the 
habit of the mate at certain times, and after that there is no 
approach allowed by the female. The human being, from 
causes which are attributed to the usages of society, is far 
more addicted to the sexual passions than are the dumb ani- 
mals. And in this particular the human race could take a 
truthful and beneficial lesson from the dumb brutes. These 
animals which we call brutes, but who are infinitely superior, 
to many of the so-called human race, do not allow any mat- 
ing until the female is old enough to understand what she is 
about, and, then, not until the female is perfectly willing. 
But society has made some marriage customs and placed 
the woman in the nature of a slave, so that she seems to be 
obliged to submit to the husband whether she will or will not. 

This is a matter to be thought over by every young lady be- 
fore she has given herself up to these bestial usages of 
society, and thinks out and determines to obey the laws of 
her own being. But this will appear more fully when we 
speak of the marriage relation. 

At the present there is room to know more with all parties. 

We desire to assist you to know how to overcome all of 
this passion and to have it under your most thorough control. 

How can you do this? We think we can make this so 
plain that it will be a wonder that it was never put in print 
before. 



Your Inner Self. 



We have seen that there is to be no passion where there is 
no blood, or very little blood, in the arteries which are carry- 
ing the blood to the walls of the vagina and to the parts of 
the sexual organism. This is a correct assertion and one 
which is not generally known. It is this flow of blood to 
the parts which exerts such an influence on what is called the 
passionate nature of the woman. In other words, there will 
be no passion if there is no blood to the parts of the feminine 
organism. If there is any way by which a person can pre- 
vent this blood from going into these parts, it follows that 
while there is no blood there the passion can not be present. 
Think this over very carefully, as it is the secret of all self 
and sexual control. Or, in other words, if there is no blood 
to flow to these parts, there will be no passion, and the 
woman or the man who can do this will be free from all 
sexual passion. This is of great importance to know. If 
one can do this (that is, restrain the blood from entering 
these arteries), then there is most assuredly no need to say 
that any passion ever overcame them. 

On the other hand, we know that if the sexual organism 
is filled with blood, and the parts are filled with blood, there 
is nothing but a burning passion, and the persons can with 
difficulty control themselves. They have a beast to torture 
them, for this passion is an ungovernable brute. And we 
also know if there are oysters eaten, wine drank, or the 
habits of coffee, tea, or chocolate taken, as the beverages at 
the meal time, there are going to be excesses of blood car- 
ried to the parts and there will be the greatest sexual pas- 
sion. We venture to assert there is no sexual crime which 
can be named which has not been committed by persons 
who have been under the influence of this heat and arterial 
excess in these arteries, which are called the "passions " or 
"amorousness." 

We are aware that the diet of eggs, oysters, fish, and all 
kinds of meats, are direct producers of this sexual passion, 
because these foods are stimulants of the blood and they ex- 
cite the passions by having these arteries in a condition 
where they will be rapidly filled with blood. When these 



Your Imner Self. 89 

parts are filled with blood there will be passion and it is only 
when the person is too old to have any flow of blood to these 
parts that there is anything like cessation from these spasms 
of heat and turgescence of the reproductive organs which 
are called the "sexual passions. " 

Wine is a direct stimulant to all the blood flow, and it is a 
fact which is easy of proof, that the great majority of girls 
who are ruined by the promise of some man, are under the 
influence of wine at the time of the occurrence. This is 
why we object to the use of wine, and it is one of the things 
which ever} T girl should know, viz. : — that under the influence 
of wine there is no safety for any woman. We may go yet a 
step farther and assert in all truthfulness that while any per- 
son is under the influence of coffee, tea, oysters, eggs, and 
pastry there is no such thing as becoming free from the sex- 
ual passions. And when we see these youth drink these 
and other articles and eat these heating, stimulating foods, 
we can say to ourselves that there is no such a thing as being 
free from the sexual passion. 

So, we may assert that with all of the ideas which are cor- 
rect as to the perfect control, we have the fact before us that 
there is no such thing as control, where these foods are 
eaten and these stimulating beverages drank. But where 
these articles are abstained from, there is no need to be a 
moment without full and perfect sexual control and this 
control means the control of our situation on this earth, the 
control of body and mind. We would not say there will be 
an opportunity • for us to be in the greatest scale of what is 
known as society, or that we shall have an exalted place in 
the world does not follow the fact that we are wholly vir- 
tuous. But it follows that we shall be greater than if we 
were not virtuous. And it also follows that whoever is 
strictly virtuous, will have all there is of this world in point 
of enjoyment. This will occur because it is the mind that 
gives the enjojmient, and not the position and the rank or 
station of the person. Nor do we say that . with the knowl- 
edge of this perfect control of all sexual passion one will 
at once become able to control a passion which has been let 



90 Your Inner Self. 



run riot for some years past. The body which has borne 
the habit of self abuse will have some decided effort to re- 
cover from its downward grade. But we are quite sure that 
the natural elasticity of youth will soon bring out the best of 
the body, and there will not much time elapse before we 
shall see the greatest improvement in the bod}'. 

Let us come to this sexual control. We have seen that it 
is the flow of blood to the parts which causes the passion. 
If we can control this flow of blood we can surety control 
the passion, or rather we can prevent this passion. Not 
that we may prevent this passion if the body is in the state 
of heat already. That would almost be an impossibility in 
case there was alreadj' some powerful passion at once taking 
place in the body. But in am' ordinary case, and especially 
in all of those cases where there is the least desire to become 
better, we are sure there can be an immediate control re- 
gained, which will grow stronger as the time goes on. And 
this control, once so gained, will grow to be perfect as one 
keeps the control of the body. 

In every case of passion where the blood is carried to 
the parts, almost without control of the mind, place the 
parts at once in the coldest of water, and sit in that water 
until all the blood is carried away from the arteries which 
cany the blood to all of these organs. If one can not sit in 
the water long enough to make sure the parts are measurably 
free from blood, then wash as quickly as may be possible, 
and repeat this washing in cold water as long as there is any 
particle of passion left in the body. 

If, from an} r cause, there seems to be a passion which can 
not be overcome, and one can not wash, then the best thing 
to do is to walk as far and as fast as the person can go, and 
walk as long as the strength will hold out. Walk until the 
bod}' is entirely exhausted, and follow by a quick, cold bath 
aud a thorough rubbing of the skin. The washing is un- 
doubtedly the best antidote to all passion, as the moment 
there is cold applied to the parts there must be a contraction 
of all the arteries there and as soon as the arteries contract, 
there is an end to all the passion. 



Your Inner Self. 91 



More than this. As soon as the arteries are once contracted 
they will be more ready to be contracted the next time. Or, 
in other words, when the parts are no longer supplied with 
blood there will be no passion. This is sure. When once 
there commences to be a control of the parts to get this pas- 
sion under control by contracting the arteries, there will be a 
readiness to contract these arteries which was not there before. 
The commencement, which is always the worst and needs 
the most will power, will have been something, and the next 
step will be easier, and so on until the parts are in absolute 
control of the person and there can be absolutely no loss or 
waste when some object comes up which in other persons 
would create the fire to burn them. 

By a reference to the plate we shall see that the moment 
we are in control of the blood supply to the parts we are in 
control of all the passion of any person. 

The idea is not onty feasible but has been in use by per- 
sons whom the writer is acquainted with, and has been told 
to many without any single failure, so far as the writer 
knows. 

If, from any cause (menstruation, for instance), there is no 
opportunity to wash, there is still the walking, which will al- 
ways prove beneficial Washing alone will prove the safe- 
guard and the antidote to all kinds of sexual passion which 
are now on the earth if one has the diet properly regulated. 

We think there is no doubt of this, and we feel sure that 
at this age of the world there has never been anything 
given to humanity which is of such real benefit as this simple 
but efficacious remedy for all passions in every stage. 

But there will always remain other things to foment pas- 
sion which are not under the control of the washing, for the 
reason that these other stimulants are not in the surface of 
the bod}', but are deeper seated and will not go down at the 
first washing. 

We allude more particularly to the food, or such stimulants 
which are so common in eveiy household. 

The custard of eggs and milk. The beefsteak smothered 
in onions. The tea and coffee which are at once direct stim- 



92 Your Inner Self. 



ulants to the sexual organs, and we have no hesitation in 
saying the person who eats of these articles will have a 
passion which the water cold and effective though it is and 
always will be, yet this water will not put out this internal 
fire until there is a change in the constituents of the blood. 

Nor do we think the fact of washing when one has been 
sitting on the lap of some young man, will at once cool off 
this passion. These habits should not be thought of. The 
washing is the greatest of help and if persevered in will 
overcome any passion in the world. But we can not think 
that when the blood is all on fire there is anything which will 
at once change all the parts of the blood and make all the 
blood cool. But it will help. The will will accomplish the 
rest. If the young lady who has been subject to tempta- 
tion, and has been the victim to passion, is desirous to at 
once become perfect mistress of her own body, and if there 
is any widow who is desirous or under the absolute necessity 
of becoming at once strictly chaste, there is no remedy 
which we have ever heard of so easy and so effective as the 
sitting in the bath of cold water for the continued washing 
of the parts on the surface as much as can be placed in con- 
tact with the cold water. 

As soon as the water toucnes the parts there is contraction, 
and the passion is abated. The next time (as it is sure that 
one washing is not sufficient to overcome this flow of blood 
to all the deeper arteries), the act of contraction will be 
easier and it is also certain that the effort will not have to be 
so great to overcome this second sexual passion as it was in 
the first place. So the next time the parts are washed or 
bathed in cold water there will be an easier task than in the 
first place and so on each time the task is easier and the ar- 
teries are really and permanently contracted. As soon as 
these arteries are contracted, there will be no more passion 
in the body. Gloiy be to God, whose grace is sufficient to 
overcome the beasts of the world. But shall we say there 
can be an immediate control while there is the mental idea of 
the causes of passion in the system ? No. We think not. 
The desire of the person must be for control and then these 



Your Inner Self. 93 



aids are effective. But if there is any condition where the 
person is yet desirous of going on in this road of passion, 
we do not think anything will have any permanent effect on 
them, or their passions. As long as the diet is wrong there 
will be passion. As long as there is the desire to have 
passion there will be passion until the passions are burned 
out and gone for all time. Mental desire must precede the 
bodily fact. This is for you to decide. So, that to assert 
there is a sure remedy to control all passion is one thing (and 
we think we have that sure remedy. Indeed we know we 
have a sure remedy for all passion to those who desire to live 
better), and to control that passion which has been blazing 
along for a length of time is another thing which is not so 
sure. 

We think we may sa}' as follows : 

First (and this is of the utmost importance), one must 
possess this desire to do right and to be obedient to the law 
of God. To the law of a perfectly virtuous body. Second, 
there is the inexorable law of food which is of so much im- 
portance that we do not think there can be any virtue among 
the classes of people who do not pay the strictest attention 
to the diet line. We say it with all desire to utter the truth, 
when we assert there can be no effort effectually made 
towards a virtuous life, where the parties eat the unclean 
things and are addicted to the intoxicants of the day. It is 
simply an impossibility. We may add a third condition 
which will be apparent to any one who thinks of the differ- 
ence of a life of strict virtue and one of the opposite char- 
acter, and this is the fact that when the person who is de- 
sirous of living a good life is in a place where there is con- 
stant temptation and constant thoughts of the opposite sex 
placed before her ; we say with these thoughts in the head 
there is not much chance of a virtuous life. But with the 
fact of a desire to live aright, a determination to have the 
body aright and virtuous, and the dependence on God which 
should always come first, there is no person but what can 
break off all of these vile habits and at once become a better 
woman, and every one will be surprised at her advancement 



9-t Your Inner Self. 



in what is termed the knowledge of the world, and 
the immediate superior condition of the body which is 
strictly virtuous. She will in a short time be looking at 
others and as she sees the others she will see the effect of 
the folly of this loss and this waste of life. Her e3 T es will 
be opened. 

She will also have the eyes opened sufficiently to see the 
difference between the persons who are obeying the laws of 
virtue and those who do not know how to live. Virtue is 
knowledge. Knowledge is power. 

How often should this washing be taken ? We think this 
depends in a great measure on the condition of the one who has 
it to do. If one has been in the habit of self abuse and the pas- 
sion comes up there should be the washing or soaking m cold 
water as often as the passion comes up, and not allow an} T 
thought of any one person or any body to get into the mind or 
overcome the determination to get the control of your body. 
Wash fifty time a day if the passion comes up fifty times a 
day. And if this does not do, go without the food until 
there is no food for the blood to have any surplus to flow into 
those arteries. 

As you get control of this set of arteries there will be no 
need of washing save at the morning bath. This will keep 
you all right. 

Kecapitulation. 1. If there is any desire to live a 
strictly virtuous life, make the first dependence on God and 
then get hold of His laws. Keep these laws and these laws 
will keep you in all cases. 2. The food is of the first im- 
portance. There is no possibility of any one being virtuous 
who eats eggs, oysters, pastry, fish, flesh, drinks tea, coffee, 
or chocolate. Wherever you know of one who drinks wine, 
beer, or any spirituous liquors, } r ou may be sure there is no 
strict virtue in the person. No matter if this is the habit of 
the greatest person you ever knew, you may put it down as 
an absolute fact that there can not be any virtue while there 
is this food and drink in the body to cause a condition of 
blood which is directly opposite to virtue. 

Sleeping in a room which has bad air will destroy the lungs. 



Your Inner Self. 95 



Bad air and warm beds will cause a flow of blood to the 
parts and this excess of blood causes passion and loss of 
force. It is better to sleep in a cold or cool room than to 
sleep in a room which has air so bad as to cause the blood to 
be degraded and dead. Degraded blood corpuscles are 
liable to produce gusts of passion in the growing body which 
can not be controlled. Sleep in a well ventilated room. 
Better, without the dust from a carpet. 

The mind has always a good or a bad effect on the 
body. Keep your mind from any of the incentives to pas- 
sion which are already in the hands of your associates. Do 
not read them and do not think of anything which will have 
a tendency to keep your mind on these thoughts of passion 
or of the other sex. Wait until the Lord will provide you a 
mate who is worthy of you, and then this so-called enjoy- 
ment will be all your own. There can not be any pleasure 
where there is no perfect love. Mind this and do not think 
of what might be, but think of controlling all of your powers 
to become better and stronger, to do more good and to serve 
the Master better. The washing in cold water is the most 
important thing which one has in the world to control 
the passions of the body, because the cold and the 
water are at once contracting to the blood current, and 
thus if there is no blood there it will be impossible to have 
any passion. 

After one has washed and the passion does not seem to be 
conquered, the next thing is to make a prolonged fast of 
from twelve to forty-eight hours, during which time neither 
water nor food should pass the lips. This is another of the 
aids which the Lord has provided to all of earth's willing 
and anxious souls, to overcome the body and to gain perfect 
control of the animal nature. Fast persistently and you will 
never have any passion for anything of the sexual nature. 
You can as surely overcome this passion as you may be sure 
that water will overcome fire if placed in contact with the 
fire. 

And you can be just as certain that if there is no food and 
no drink placed in the bod} T that there will be no passion, as 



96 Your Inner Self. 



you may be sure there will be no fire where there is nothing 
to burn. 

Food makes the blood, and when this blood is in excess in the 
body there will be some of this blood go into these arteries. 
But the fasting stops the supply of blood and thus you have 
another certain method of destroying all the fuel which is 
burning you up. 

Some of the no-G-od doctors will tell you that to go without 
your food for one or two days will destroy the vitality, but you 
need not be afraid of this, as, if there is too much sexual 
passion and you can not control it, } t ou ma}' be reasonably 
sure you have an excess of vitality, which is better to be 
starved out from the body rather than to have it left in the 
body to burn the body into a cinder. 

We have accomplished many days of this fasting, and we 
know what we say when we tell you that fasting is one of 
the aids to a strictly virtuous life. Gro without the water as 
well as the food, for the water increases the size of the 
blood corpuscles and this is what is not wanted. Try this 
fasting for any of the passions. These are two of the great- 
est helps in the world. 

Laborious exercise of any kind will do you good if these 
passionate thoughts are in your head. "Walking is one of 
the best modes of getting rid of this surplus of blood. But if 
you have other work to do, do not hesitate to do it and keep 
the mind from anything which will bring on these thoughts 
which you are tiying to get from your mind. Shun all per- 
sons who tell stories which are of a double nature or have 
any tendency to excite you. If } T ou are in such a place, get 
out at any cost and get into some better place. But remem- 
ber that if you will take all these passions with you there is 
no better place to conquer all of your passions than in the 
place 3 T ou know, and the place }T>u now are. Your own 
mind is first. The body will follow the mind. In 3-our 
own home and in company with your own mother — there is 
no one who can do any more for you. It is not in the con- 
vent nor in the cloister that these passions are overcome. 
Kemember this. The priest is one who has never overcome 



Your Inner Self. 97 



his passion, and to-day there is not one of the great classes of 
earth's toilers who is not more free from those sexual pas- 
sions than the priests in the church. 

You must conquer your own passion without any reference 
to what any one else may be doing. It is in you and all the 
world can not help you unless you take hold of the aids 
which are held out to you. The fight you will make to be- 
come strictly virtuous, is the fight which is between a dis- 
eased body and a body of health and long life. It is a fight 
which is between the early death of a consumptive, and the 
long life of those who are respected' and happy up to the 
time of death. Virtue sweetens every task and makes it 
seem light and eas} r . The wastes of life are the things 
which are burdens and which are the drags down to death 
and worse. If you are a virtuous woman, you are a queen 
and a daughter of the most high God who looks and smiles 
upon you all the day and is waiting to have you come up 
higher in all the scales of this and the next life. No mat- 
ter the trials and troubles of life, so that Grod your Father 
smiles on you. His smile is for the virtuous. He loves 
your inner self. 



G 



CHAPTER IX. 
THE SUPREMACY. 

In all the animal creation, there is a time of age when 
both the female and male comes to the period which is called 
"maturity." There are other names for this period, as, for 
instance, in some of the animals this period is called ' ' rut- 
ting, " and in others it is called "heat. " During this period 
the female will permit the approach of the male and (per- 
haps with the exception of a few daj T s after) then there will 
not be allowed any approach from the male until the next 
period of rutting or of heat. The commencing of this 
period in the man is called "puberty." At this time, the 
man is able to beget offspring, and this ability, in the male, 
may reach almost any age, while in the female, this child- 
bearing age will only reach as long as the menses are in reg- 
ular recurrence. 

When the menses cease, this period is called the ' ' meno- 
pause. " After the menopause there is no possibility of 
having any more children. (Sarah, who bore Isaac at the 
age of one hundred was an exception. ) The time of the ap- 
pearance of the menses has something to do with the contin- 
uance of the menses. For, if the menses appear at the four- 
teenth year, there is a likelihood of there being a cessation 
of the menses at the age of forty-two. In the latitudes 
where the menses first appear at the age of eight, the menses 
are said to cease at the age of twenty-four. Any young lady 
may be quite sure at what age the menopause will occur, if 
she can date the commencement of the appearance of the 
menses. There is no doubt but what at the time of the com- 
mencement of the menses there is the same animal heat in 
the human race, and it is at this time that the young lad}' is 
in the greatest danger of losing the control of the body and 
finding herself in the control of animal passion, which she 
should never allow to have any control of her body. 



The Supremacy. 99 



This is the natural condition, to have sexual heat in the 
body and to have the passions which were ordained by the 
Architect of the world to coerce the race into bearing chil- 
dren. But there is also another law which enjoins us to 
have all of these passions in the most severe subjection. It 
is therefore a matter of the greatest consideration to all the 
race that both the male and the female shall be in the best 
order and have the most perfect control of themselves at the 
time of this passion or heat which comes on after or during 
the time of the menstruation in the female and puberty in 
the male. And this should be considered a period when the 
slightest approach to anything of a stimulating nature should 
be sedulously avoided. 

Anything which is stimulating to the nervous system at 
this time should not be used as food or as drink. Tea, cof- 
fee, all kinds of alcoholic chinks and all the meats (unless 
the female is at the most laborious work) should be totally 
abstained from. Eggs, oysters (which are the vomit of a 
later aged immorality), wines, seasoned food, as of spiced 
cake, all the peppers, onions and garlic, should be abstained 
from, if one desires the perfect control of the body during 
this passionate period of existence. 

Those foods which are in themselves heating, as the 
potato, pastry, lobster and crab, chocolates, cocoa shells, 
ice cream, clams, all the kinds of fish, are those which 
should be kept away from the stomach. The habit of 
eating cream on all kinds of fruit, and the habit of filling 
the stomach with milk is another menace to the body 
which should be avoided. We say these classes of food 
should not be eaten and that all kinds of drinks which 
are stimulating must be kept out of the stomach, if there 
is desire for the supremacy of the body by the mind. 
One of these natures will now assert itself, and it is at 
this time that the mastery is gained by the one or the 
other of these natures, and when this mastery is once 
gained it is usually kept b3 r the one which is dominant at 
this threshold of life. 

We are assured that it is best for the mind to have control 



100 The Supremacy. 



of the body and for this purpose we have devoted a short 
chapter to this subject of supremacy. 

If the mind is to have control of the body, and all of this 
passion is to be under the most absolute subjection, there 
should be a full recognizance of the spiritual part of the 
being, and this spiritual should have the utmost control. 
Appetites and desires for airything on the earth should be the 
second thought, and this fight for the supremacy should be 
the first thing in order. "Which shall rule? The mind or 
the animal part of the bod}'? "We think we hear the answer. 
The desire for the mind to rule and to have this body in the 
most perfect subjection. 

We will group the aids to this subjection in the shortest 
possible space to be made available to those for whom this 
is written, and to those who are alone struggling for the su- 
premacy of mind over matter. "We say "alone." For 
happy is the girl who has a mother to tell her of this critical 
period of life and to warn her of the dangers which are 
ready to beset her. Fortunate is the girl who has a judicious 
friend who can point out the beasts of life and warn the 
young lad}' of the enemies which lie in wait to devour her 
and her substance. W"e think the following are the best 
means to obtain the supremacy of the mind over the pas- 
sions of the bod} r . Valuable in their respective order. 

1. Pra}^er to God. 

2. Fasting. 

3. "Washing. 

4. Labor. Exercise. 

By the term prayer, we do not mean the ordinar}- repeti- 
tion of a certain formula of words, even of the form set by 
our Lord; because this repetition will eventually lose its ef- 
fect on the mind unless there is the innate dependence on 
God which comes from a contemplation of God as He is. 
There must be that inner desire to live a near life to God 
and to do His will before this form of prayer becomes avail- 
able. We think, by prayer, to indicate a sincere contempla- 
tion of the bright and glorious Being who has made the 
world and all the things therein, and a constant desire to see 



The Supremacy. 101 



Him, to be His child, to feel as if your entire existence were 
in the hands of your Father, and whatever happened were the 
work of Him who knew all things from the beginning. 

This prayer is one thought for the throne of God, where 
we are seen as we really are and not any of our imperfections 
are hid. A throne from where the angels see us and from 
where all our aspirations for a better life are known and ap- 
preciated. From where the Lord Jesus looks down and sees 
the children who are desirous of becoming nearer. This is a 
prayer and contemplation which is of the utmost impor- 
tance in that struggle to have control of the body. While 
we are in the state of contemplation of this Father, we 
shall not be likely to commit any sin by thought or yield to 
anything which is of the earth. 

This is one of the hardest places to find one's self in the 
existence of this life. To drop all of this earth's annoy- 
ances and to give up all to the guidance of God. To look to 
God and forget our present troubles. To drop all the cares 
of life so as to think that the good Father will manage them 
better than we can. This is a prayer and a frame of mind 
which is hard to obtain. It can be obtained hy any one. By 
the desire to live a pure and devoted life. By a desire to be 
more serviceable to the Master. By a desire to overcome all 
these "fleshly lusts." Because God in this instance, sends 
the Spirit down and shows us the existence of himself. We 
can contemplate the throne and the Son on that throne. 

The writer of this was at one time an infidel. During that 
lonely time there was nothing but unhappiness. When he 
commenced to pray, there was much of the time when the 
prayers seemed to be no more than vaporings of the mind ; 
everything which was of earthly life came in front of the 
desire to do better and then all aspirations would vanish and 
everything would come into the mind instead of the 
prayer which should have been uppermost. But with 
each failure to find peace of mind and to be able to pray, 
there came a desire to persevere in this prayer. And ever}' 
day the power to pray became clearer. The more the dis- 
tance from all passion the clearer the prayer became ; just 



102 The Supremacy. 



as the road becomes clear as one travels over it towards the 
end. Finally, in one of the great trials of life there came a 
time when it was certain that Dothing but the intervention of 
something beside the natural law would save the writer from 
degradation; there was one prolonged effort to have the 
Father look upon his child. This effort brought peace 
and the Spirit of praj'er came and assisted the writer to gaze 
steadily at the throne of G-od and see the Son. Not with the 
natural eyes. None may do this. But with the spiritual 
eyes which are opened by the power of God to His children. 
It does not require a faith which is almost impossible. It 
requires a constant desire, and this desire will be fulfilled. A 
constant looking towards the throne which is only just in 
front of all of us. This is the prayer which will overcome 
all passion and leave the body in that condition which is 
purity. If one has never prayed, this is hard to commence. 
But if there is a desire, and one can repeat the Lord's prayer 
in earnest, the time will soon come when this earnest prayer 
will avail against all things and against all earthly natures. 
The throne will always be in sight and the appeal to the 
throne will aways be heard. 

Although we use this prayer in this place for the purpose 
of overcoming all this earthly passion and bodily nature, 
yet this prayer is available for any purposes of life and is 
one of the best methods of obtaining the entire guidance of 
the Holy Spirit in all our ways through life. 

There is a class who do not believe in the existence of 
the Hoi}' Spirit. At one period of life this writer was very 
doubtful of the fact of there being any Spirit A God in the 
world during this present age. But there is no warrant to 
prove that there ever was the Spirit taken out of the world 
after the Lord sent it into the world at Pentecost. And if 
Jesus said "I will be with } r ou unto the end of the age, " 
surely He is with us, or in His person and guiding us ; or, 
He is with us by presence of His Holy Spirit. We think one 
of these facts must be true. We think this is the very 
Spirit of God who listens to our feeble cries and we are 
sure it is the ■• Spirit who helpeth our infirmities." 



The Supremacy. 103 



2. Fasting. The value of fasting as a means of obtain- 
ing the perfect control of all sexual passions and all the 
grosser elements of life, has been known for ages. But in 
this age which is certainly a gluttonous age, this habit of 
fasting has gone into disrepute. Very few except the Roman 
church have a habit of fasting, and this apostate human or- 
ganization has only the semblance of fasting and the reality 
is gone. The* fasting which is essential is the total absti- 
nence from food or drink for some stated time which may be 
longer or shorter. The moment one can fast, the control of 
the body is assured. The more that any one will yield to 
demands of the appetite, the more they will yield to the de- 
mands of passion. 

In order to obtain control of the body the celibates of all ages 
have fasted. The nuns and the monks in the Roman church 
have made this fasting a basis for the absurd statement that 
the Roman Oatholic church held more virtuous women than 
any other church. This statement is without any founda- 
tion, in fact, and on the contrary, the church which is so 
largely dominated by celibate priests could not under 
any circumstances, become a virtuous body of people. It is 
not in the nature of things, nor in the law which governs the 
world. The fact that there are hundreds of instances where 
the bones and skeletons of infants have been found near or 
under the convents, are enough to prove that all the arro- 
gance of a superior virtue by the so-cailed Roman Catholic 
church is all false. But there is a better proof than in dig- 
ging away at the rotten records of a corrupt and anti-Chris- 
tian church. The fact which states and proves its assertions 
false at the outset is that in all the houses of prostitution of 
this nation and of Great Britain, there is a very large major- 
ity of Roman Catholic prostitutes, and this fact which 
is easily proved in any large city shows conclusively that 
their boast that they have anything which will prove a safe- 
guard to the virtue of their women, is totally false and pure- 
ly imaginary. 

We have no hesitation in saying that there is not one in a 
thousand of the Roman Catholic priests who have lived and 



104 The Supremacy 



do now live virtuous lives. This is not a slander. The 
very faces of these priests show that they are sensuous and 
devilish in their sexual passions. The fat neck and the sen- 
suous mouth all betray their sexual passions which are too well 
developed to be held in subjection to their spiritual nature. 
Their faces prove this fact so well that any one who can read 
may run as they read the amorous and sexual appetites devel- 
oped and satisfied. There can be no doubt in any intelli- 
gent reader's mind as soon as the face of a priest can be seen. 
The stories which ars daily retailed about these so-called 
"reverend gentleman," are not devoid of truth. So that 
the more quiet these Roman Catholics can keep about their 
superior virtue the better will they appear. Fasting among 
the churches is really gone out of date. A.mong private in- 
dividuals this habit is observed but rarely. Fasting and 
prayer seem to be unknown. It will not be long, when one 
tries this habit, to show that of all the acts which are of 
use in the mastery of the body, there is nothing which ap- 
proaches the act of fasting. 

We do not think any explicit directions are needed, as 
there will be no two who are alike in their body and in their 
mental and bodily needs. 

But this may be given as a general rule : G-o without the 
supper. If this does not help, go without the breakfast 
also. If this does not leave the body free from all desire 
and the mind free from all fanc}^, go without all food and 
water for one entire day and then eat the next morning. I 
am quite sure this fasting will take away all sexual desire, 
and as sure that there is no other act on earth by which so 
thorough a control may be gained of the entire body in so 
short a space of time. 

When this act of fasting is added to the act of prayer 
there is a bond which appeals to the Father and is not denied. 
It is an act of sincerity in desire which no formalist ever ob- 
tains. It is an act which is of spiritual origin and is freed 
from all this earth and its desires. The Roman Catholic 
does not have this fasting, because .there is in that church no 
necessity for this absolute fast. The Romanist, by his belief, 



The Supremacy. 105 



is saved by his baptism into the church. The duties of the 
church being over, there is nothing for hirn to do except 
penance. And as they pray to the dead bodies of men and 
women like themselves, they do not have their prayers 
answered. Their ideas of virtue are not correct or rigid, be- 
cause if they make an} r lapse in their path, they can go at 
once to their priest and make confession and gain absolution. 

There is another point which is well to be looked at in this 
connection. There are two kinds of Protestants, a good 
class and a bad class. Those who are after a higher and a 
purer life and a better, purer existence while they are on this 
earth, who desire to serve the Father in spirit and in truth. 
The other class are hypocrites who are bad and desire noth- 
ing good in this world, and care nothing for anything to 
come afterwards. But there is only one class of the Roman 
Catholics, and that is the class who believe that all the 
Protestants will be damned and eternally burned up and still 
being burned. These are the Eoman Catholics as they are 
and as they desire to have the Protestants under their do- 
minion, and are likely to have them if there is not some edu- 
cating accomplished more than is being done at this time. 

The class has no compunction of conscience in lying to or 
cheating a Protestant any more than one would take the life 
of a chicken. This is the fact, as any one can tell who has 
ever had anything to do with these Roman descendants of a 
barbarous empire. 

Nor can it be wondered at. These people ( the Roman 
Catholics) believe in a materialist church, the work of men's 
hands. They hold and teach that there is no salvation out- 
side of this church. To join this Roman Catholic church one 
must be baptized into that church, and it does not matter 
whether one has any change of heart or not. So that they 
are baptized into the church they are safe here and for eter- 
nity. But the Word of God teaches that we must be " born 
again " to enter into the kingdom, and if we have not that 
"new birth" we are not of Christ. 

The Protestants may be divided into two classes — those 
who are born again and those who are not. . The Roman 



106 



The Supremacy. 



Catholics aVe in one class; the class that has never been born 
again. They are of the earth, earthy. They are to be 
shunned in this fight for the supremacy of the spiritual. 
All their habits of thought are to be shunned. All of their 
Jesuitical ideas are to be avoided. When we speak of fast- 
ing, we do not allude to any Roman idea of fasting, but we 
mean the total denial of the bodj r to all water and all food 
for some space of time. Make your space of time to suit 
your body and your needs. It is your body that is to be 
controlled, and not the body of something which is an ap- 
panage of some human society. And it is your mind that 
is desirous of having that body under its control, and not 
under the control of some fat-necked priest of Baal. You 
need to go to God, but to the priest you do not need to stir 
one step. You do not need any advice in this matter, 
unless you take the advice of the Book. ' ' Ask and you 
shall receive. " Some space has been given to this fasting, 
because the Roman church makes a false claim of knowing 
all about this fasting, and we are convinced the} r know noth- 
ing about it. Also, because at one time we were in the 
error of supposing that some Roman Catholics might be pure. 
We now know better. None of them are ever "born again," 
and this leaves them in their true light: a class of people 
who are the advocates and followers of the great beast.* 
3. Washing. The daily bath and the continued washing 



*It may be thought an expression of prejudice to assert that all the 
Roman Catholics are advocates and followers of the great beast of the 
Bible. But such is the fact. In the XIII. chapter of Revelation is 
found our authority, eighteenth verse. 

The solution to this is in " the number of the man. " 
The pope of Rome wears on his tiara the words, worked in diamonds, 
Vicarius Filii Dei. The first word (as the letter "u " is unknown in 
the Latin language and is a " v "), will count up 112, as follows: 

TOTALS. 



5 
1 

100 



1 



U(V). 

s 



Total-... 112 



Total 




1 
50 
1 
1 



• 500 
■ 000 

• 1 



Total.... 501 



112 

53 

501 



666 

Verily there is nothing like the word of God. It is a lamp to the 
feet and a path to the children who are travelling home. 



The Supremacy. 107 



for the subjection of the body are among those subjects 
which are treated of in another part of this work. We will 
not allude to them here farther than by saying that every- 
bod}' who is not daity bathed is not and can not be clean. 
The daily bath is one of the means which is given to us to 
take care of the body. If this is neglected there can be no 
such a submission of the bod}' as there would be when the 
body was daily washed. The outlet of the body after the 
bowels and the kidne}'s, is from the skin. When this outlet 
is clogged there will be disease. Disease of the body means 
disease of the brain, and there can not be a clean mind in a 
dirty body. Pay especial attention to this washing and the 
time will come when that care will come back to you a hun- 
dred fold. 

4. Labor. Although it seems hard to be obliged to 
labor for a living, yet there is an abundance of evidence to 
prove that all labor by the hands and the body is of the ut- 
most benefit, and without any of this labor the world would 
be a mass of wild animals. 

Hard labor will more readily dissipate any passion than 
all the sermons m the world. This fact accounts for the 



greater virtue among the laboring classes than there is 
among those who do not have to labor for a living. It also 
accounts for the cause of so much sexual passion among the 
priests and ministers who do not have enough labor to keep 
their animal passions in subjection. There can be no su- 
premacy of the mind over the body until that body is fitted 
to control its own passions. The body must be taught 
proper subjection, and this subjection will never be reached 
until there is some muscular development of the body. This 
development of the body is found in those who are in the 
habit of using the body and not otherwise. A body that is 
not used, is a body not worth anything in the battle of life. 
One of the causes of the decay and fall of the Roman em- 
pire was the decay and degeneracy of the human bodies 
which were the rulers of Rome. If you do not have labor 
enough, see to it that the body gets a proper amount of ex- 
ercise and give each muscle something to do which will be 



108 The Supremacy. 



exercise and allow tke blood to flow to all parts, of the body 
and carry the life stream of blood so that it shall be clear 
and running, instead of stagnating and dead. Keep your 
body sweet and free by exercise, and so shall yon keep the 
evil thought out of your head. This is so true that there 
will be a greater consideration than at first sight seems to be 
on the surface. Consider — that all the blood flowing to- 
wards the sexual organs can be drawn away and kept away 
by an}^ work which will occupy the body in drawing away 
those supplies from the parts. Consider — that when you 
labor, you increase the part which does the labor. For in- 
stance, the blacksmith's arm, and the penman's and the 
piano player's fingers. Consider the legs and extremities of 
those who have to march during the campaign of some arm}'. 
Also the bodies of those who are obliged to labor during the 
early part of their lives. Do not allow } T ourself to loll on 
the bed or the lounge and dream away the hours. Think of 
the poor who are awaiting something to come to them from 
some unknown source, and think if you can not do some 
good and win some special smile from God, who has made 
you as well as the rest of mankind, and those who are poor 
as well as those who are rich. Be up and active, and do not 
rest until you have conquered every vestige of passion in the 
body; and do not stop this exercise, if you have no work, 
until all the animal passions are burned out and you are 
completely master of the body which God has given to vou 
for a covering to your soul. 

Labor is a benefit to anybody. If there can be no labor 
and no exercise, there will be a decay of the body as sure as 
there are any natural laws to be obeyed. If you have gained 
the mastery of your body there is no hesitation in saying you 
are the child of the King and that you can look up and say 
God is your Father. But if this matter has been delayed, 
see to it that there is no time to be lost in the future. You 
can redeem the time and become the mistress of your body, 
and your mind shall have the supremacy of all the 
actions of the body. Then no appetites nor any passion 
shall ever cause you to do an act which will cause a blush of 



The Supremacy. 109 



shame to mantle your cheek. The Father, Son and Holy 
Spirit will help you to reach this glorious place where there 
can not be any anxiety as to what is coming next. 

Supremacy of the mind over the body means purity of the 
heart, intelligence of the mind, and an entire consecration to 
the laws of God. You can have it. Commence at once and 
do not stop short of this entire control of this body of death 
which is yours to use, but not to abuse. God has given this 
trust to you and it is your mind which should have the su- 
premacy, and not the body. Allow no appetite, no passion, 
nor gross desire to ensnare you for one second. Commence 
at once, and if there is the least trouble, or if there is any 
doubt in your mind, do not hesitate to pray, to fast, to 
labor, and to have every habit of such strict cleanliness that 
there can be no possible chance to fail in your gaining the 
entire control of the only house you have to live in on this 
earth. 

Consider that this supremacy of the mind over the body 
does not consist in having a continual quarrel every day and 
night. Your mind can not stand any quarrel like this. You 
must have an absolute control of these passions and there 
should not be a second of time for these passions of the body 
or its appetites to have a sa}^ about anything in their nature. 
Control them absolutely. See that no obscene thought is al- 
lowed in the region of your mind. Have no book or picture 
which will allow the body to have even a semblance of inde- 
pendence. Keep your body as much under control as if it 
were a machine and liable to run away from you. You are 
to have no more sexual passion than if you were a post. 
Time enough for this passion when you yield that body to 
the husband of your choice. Then, and not until then, will 
the time come when you can yield up the supremacy of the 
mind over the body, when love and law are both yours 
and own you mistress of the world. 



CHAPTER X. 
THE PERSON. 

If I were to say the best thing I could wish a young lady 
to have, I would say, the proper idea of taking care of her 
person. I mean by this, I would have her versed in every- 
thing which would pertain to the good care of the bocty. As 
she would wish to be virtuous in herself, so I would have 
her careful of the feelings of all the rest of the world, and 
especially the other sex. I would have her keep her person 
as sacred as if the very touch of a male hand polluted it, as 
it surely does, — if that touch is not the touch of a brother 
or a father or a wedded husband. There is no doubt of this, 
as the very touch of a woman is, at times, enough to set many 
men into the wildest passion, and there are many of them who 
do not know what the matter with them is and so they be- 
come crazy on this point of personal magnetism which should 
have been guarded against by the young lady, who should 
never have allowed the least approach of the man. 
The ver} r touch of some females is of so much power as to 
be the most dangerous of fires to a young man of ardent 
passions. 

Look at the many lovers who have thought they had lost 
their love, or became jealous, and they have killed the girl 
and shot themselves. True, they were foolish. Crazy, if 
you please ; but there should have been no familiarity in the 
first place to have brought about so great a passion. This 
passion grows by the feeding, and if there is not the least 
encouragement in the first place there will never be any of this 
crazy love which is all on one side. The girl is always to be 
blamed at the first, as there can not be any love at the heart 
of a man unless it has received some sort of encouragement 
from the girl. I say, do not allow the slightest familiarity 
from any man until you are wedded. No handshaking even. 
I have heard it said by men who were versed in the ways of 

110 



The Person. Ill 



the world and had an abundance of personal magnetism, that 
if they could hold a girl's hand a moment all the rest of their 
conquest was easy. I do not saj r they were always correct. 
But it is unfortunately true that there are some men who 
have that magnetism which will allow them to persuade a 
girl against her own will, and the first time she yields to that 
persuasion she is lost. Tnere is no such thing as any safe 
self confidence. There may be confidence in the good Grod. 
And he may keep }'ou if you are in a position of danger and 
allow one to take hold of your person to aid you from a 
fire or from drowning, but in no other way should you allow 
the body to come in contact with the male, nor should you 
allow any one to have any touch of your person ; not for 
any excuse whatever. Let no one touch you. It is too bad to 
say it, but it is the truth that all men are not in the habit of 
controlling their bodies, and when their passion is their mas- 
ter they have no thought of what they are doing. And there 
are others who have no idea of any right or virtue any more 
than dogs, and if they could ruin you, they would feel that 
something was gained for them, and, having accomplished 
that ruin of your person, they would go about and tell their 
young acquaintances of it. 

This may seem cruel and harsh, unneeded language, 
but it is more than true, and there are thousands of unfor- 
tunate and sorrowful girls who have unthinkingly allowed 
their body to be touched by some acquaintance and dated 
their downfall from that first thoughtlessly permitted touch. 

It is a certain fact, one which there are thousands of men 
and women who will testify to its correctness, that the first 
liberty of touch, holding the hand, or the arm, or merely 
standing in close proximity to the other sex ; or a look is 
enough to convert a man (and this is always the fact 
in the case of a libertine) from a sane person to a 
wild beast who will not become satisfied until -he has accom- 
plished your total ruin. To obtain your body he will lie to 
you, in all the languages he may possess. His arts, his 
tears, his protestations of love and eternal friendship, his 
oaths and assertions may be, in his own mind, all true at the 



112 The Person. 



time. But, we say to you, fly from his touch, his looks, as 
you would from a mad dog. 

Consider the fact, that no man who is so passionate that 
he can not control himself, can possibly make a virtuous, 
faithful husband. Also, that a man who loves 3*011 as a hus- 
band should will be as careful of your virtue, and your 
person will be as sacred in his eyes, as if you were his mother 
or his sister. The least familiarit}* on his part should be 
checked, repulsed, and rebuked by you on the instant, even 
if the engagement ring is on your finger. Keep your body 
sacred from the touch of a man until the law has pro- 
nounced you man and wife. 

This care of the person is always to be considered if by 
any chance you are called upon to travel alone. Our advice 
is to sit in your seat and allow no one of the male sex to 
draw you into a conversation. If a question is asked 3'ou, 
answer it without anjiliing more than a quick glance to see 
the person who asks the question. If he is old, infirm and 
crippled, you may assist him; but no young man needs as- 
sistance — mind that. His idea in his talk is to make } r ou a 
victim, or a plaything, or a fly for his poisoned net of 
webbing, which possibly ensnared another victim a day or 
two since. 

Either do not answer the young man, or do so quickly in 
yes or no, and refuse to look at him. Remember that the 
glance you make towards him is allowing yourself to be 
drawn into his personal magnetism and yielding yourself a 
willing prey, from which it is almost impossible to return. 
Keep your body chaste. Keep your thoughts chaste. Keep 
your very looks from anything which can pollute them. Do 
not allow a man to pollute yo u by his touch. 

This advice may sound pedantic and old, and it is old and 
sound from all the bitter experience which could be crowded 
into two lives. Do not allow any man to pollute you with 
his touch, is the burden of the cry, and which you will one 
day appreciate, if you are not in a condition to do this at 
present. As long as }~ou have the free and desirable graces 
of a virgin you can have your choice of the world. The mo- 



The Person. 113 



ment this is yielded up to some one who ma} r have a desire, 
but has no affinity for you and your nature, you are as much 
robbed as if the party had stolen a treasure from you, which 
indeed he has. The very touch robs you of something which 
is indescribable and which for want of a better name may be 
called the touch of a personal magnetism. When once this 
touch is gone from you, you are something which is hard to 
be described, but which is to the person you were before the 
touch, as a piece of iron, rusty and black, is to the polished 
steel magnet. 

This is our text : Do not allow anyone to touch your per- 
son under any circumstances any more than you would have 
one steal your clothes. But it would be a comparatively 
small loss to lose all the clothes you have, for you could get 
new ones. But the fresh and pure touch of virginity will 
never come back, although you ma}' sigh for it never so long 
and look for it never so bitterly. 

Keep your person as sacred as if that was the choicest 
of gold, which it is. And remember this : — That the man 
who desires to fondle you or to embrace your person is not 
the one who will prove to be faithful to your memory when 
you are absent from him, 

There are creatures I (would call them men, but I do not 
think they have a manly attribute about them), who will ap- 
pear well dressed, easy in manners, suave, polished, ready to 
be } r our friend in } T our distress, and quite ready to give you 
some advice and money too if that is needed, who, when the 
opportunity comes, will seize } r our person and accomplish 
their desires while you are wondering whether you should 
cry out or no. Beasts who are already cursed of God and 
have neither care for man nor the God that made them. For 
these animals there is only one safe way to do and that is to 
have a sure and safe distance from them, which will result in 
their keeping their distance from and allowing you to own 
your person in peace. 

These creatures are met anywhere. They are of no church. 
Of no denomination. Of all denominations. They have no 
mark on them that will tell you of their dangerous and mur- 
H 



114 The Person. 



derous proclivities. They are the politest of the polite. The 
best dressed of your acquaintance. We can tell } t ou of only 
one thing by which they ma} T be known most certainly, and 
that is that they will and do desire to rob you of your treas- 
ures by nearing } T our person. This is the only sign I can 
tell you, but it is good and unfailing. When a young man 
desires to come near to your person and to caress you, then 
is the time that all acquaintance should terminate. 

There are snakes which will utter a little noise or get their 
victim to look at them, and then fasten their eyes on the un- 
suspecting bird, and when the bird sees this stare, there does 
not appear any power of the bird to take the eyes from the 
snake and the snake crawls slowly up until the foot of the 
bird is seized in the mouth of the snake and the whole body 
is speedily devoured. I have seen this act myself. It is 
called the charming of the snake. Meanwhile the bird will 
make the most piteous of cries. But, alas, there will be no 
escape from the horrible fate which awaits the unhappy bird 
which caught the eye of the snake before it had the power 
to fly. 

Do you pity that unfortunate bird ? Pity your own fate 
of the future if you can not at once resolve and break off 
from all and any acquaintance which has any desire on your 
person, and from any and all acquaintance of the male sex 
who is in the habit of fondling your person, or of allowing 
his hand or foot to touch you anywhere. Shun the first ap- 
proach. Shun the man. Avoid the public places where he 
will be met. Avoid all private places, and give him to un- 
derstand that you are aware of his wiles and that you are 
not to be charmed. 

Remember that the difference between one that loves you 
for your own self and this creature who will rob you of the 
greatest treasure and the only treasue of this earth is this : 
The one who loves you is silent and reserved in your pres- 
ence. He does not influence you to become charmed. He 
is under your magnetism, possibly, but it is not for this he 
cares. He is seeking you as a partner for life and desires to 
rob you of nothing. The man who loves you will be satis- 



The Person. 115 



fied to take you in any condition and in any place and from 
any walk of life and does not hesitate to tell you of this at 
the first opportunity. But your snake charmer is never 
ready with his love, but his passion is always ready to eat 
you up. 

Have this in your mind, that your person is sacred, and 
that of all the earth there will be but one who can have that 
person, and that one is he who will make you a wife before 
he has the audacity to attempt to rob you of your birth- 
right. The snake is the one who is never so ready with his 
love as he is ready with his protestations of friendship and 
fidelity. Shun the snake as you would shun one who is to 
devour you. Beware of the snaky eye which sparkles to 
pick your bones and leave you among all the victims of the 
shore. 

We can not help you. Only God can aid you to defend 
yourself. Flee to Him while there is time and beseech him 
to keep you in His arms until this life is over. 

To this we will add: — Do not laugh or giggle at an}' place 
or allow your mouth to be open. 

When you are going anywhere it is best to be your own 
self and not try to be anyone else. Have a book and read. 
Keep to your own self. There will be acquaintances enough. 
There will be all you will wish to have. If you are a child 
of G-od you are in His hands and he will find you the partner 
which is to be your mate and you will not have to hunt for 
him. 

That is one of the laws of God, that He provides us all 
that is needed for us and our happiness. But he demands 
of you that your person be kept sacred, and if you will not 
keep your person sacred you will be allowed to fight for 
your own self and in this choice there is a liability of your 
making some mistake. 

If the God of Hosts picks you out a husband, as he surely 
will if you appeal to Him, there will be no divorce and no 
sorrow in the match. He does all things well, and if God 
picks you out a man there will not be any need to pick out a 
second one. Keep your person as sacred as if the God of 



116 The Person. 



Hosts had told you of the great value you are to him and as 
if that person is to have the germs of some of the children 
of G-od within you. Think of this before you are waylaid 
and shot b} T some one with whom you could never mate. 
Think of this and keep all }^our glances for the one whom 
the Lord will choose for you. 

Keep all of your person sacred and there will come such 
a happiness as is not often felt in this age of deceit and 
craft. Do not allow any snake to have the least eye of you. 
Keep all of the person as far away from these creatures as 
it is possible. Walk alone and as one to whom the Lord 
talked and loved. 



CHAPTEK XL 
PAINFUL MENSTRUATION. 

We are sure there is no more necessity of having pain 
during menstruation than there is of having pain during de- 
fecation. 

Yet there are thousands of young ladies who suffer the 
agonies of death and who do not know what to do to obtain 
relief. This chapter is for them. The well and happy per- 
sons can skip it. 

We shall ask, in the first place, what is pain ? It will not 
make any difference where the pain comes from and what the 
primal cause of that pain — what is pain f 

We reply, pain is a message from some place, to inform 
the brain that there is some obstruction, which is in the way 
of a good circulation of fluids in the body, and th?t there is 
something that the vital force wishes to have removed from 
the body. Pain is a message and nothing else. A message 
of something unpleasant from the place where the pain 
arises. 

Unless the pain is of an excruciating character so that the 
one who is having that pain is unconscious, there is a knowl- 
edge of the place from where the pain starts. This place is 
called the seat of the pain. 

Of itself, pain is not an entity, as people and the falsely 
educated doctors think of it. It is no dog, eating the vitals. 
It is not a person or a living animal of any kind. It is not 
a germ or a parasite to be, as the doctors assert, l ' over- 
come" and "relieved" by something that kills the living- 
matter. Pain is a message of intelligence from one intelli- 
gence to another intelligence. 

Mark this fact, as there is nothing of any more importance 
in the subject that is before us, than to know of this fact, 
that pain is a message and something that arises from some- 
thing which is intelligent in the body and without this intel- 

117 



118 Painful Menstruation. 

ligence there is no such thing as pain. You must unlearn 
all the doctor teaches about the ideas of pain being an entity 
and something that is alive and read}' to eat you up if it is 
not killed or destroyed in some manner. 

Take an example of pain that is truly analogous. Suppose 
a 3 T oung lady at one of the telegraph stations should tele- 
graph to her father at the other end of the line that there is 
a fire in her town and the wind is sweeping towards her sta- 
tion. The father at the other end of the line will naturally 
feel uneasy at the danger of his daughter and will send re- 
peated messages until he knows that his daughter is out of 
all danger. 

But note. Did that message have any body? No. Did 
that message have any life? No. All the life was in the in- 
telligence that was at both ends of the telegraph line and in 
the line which carries the message. There was no life in the 
message, and to a person who heard the signals that the mes- 
sage made, they would be as unintelligible as if there were 
no messages sent. 

What we call your attention to, is the fact that there is no 
life in the message nor any being in this telegraph message, 
and therefore, if there is no life, there is one of the lies of 
the allopaths (and all the schools who use poisons as the 
base of the medication), nailed as a fraud on all the victims 
who have entrusted themselves to their skill. 

The allopaths treat pain as an entity, and they go to work 
to poison that entity so that it can not have any more exist- 
ence, according to their teaching. But, as there is no life 
in the message and no sentient thing in pain, except that the 
parts that are at the ends of the telegraph line are intelli- 
gent, so there is no entity to be killed or poisoned when there 
is a pain from any part of the body. The idea of destroy- 
ing or killing pain is an idea that means the killing of the 
intelligences at both ends of the nerves, or the destruction of 
the nerves themselves. 

Why should a poison doctor be so fond of relieving pain? 
Because he knows no better, and being ignorant of the laws 
of life, G-ocl, from his throne, has cursed him. 



Painful Menstruation. 119 

The people, ignorant of their bodies, in their blind grop- 
ings after something to shield them from the consequences 
of their disobedience of the laws of God, accept these emis- 
saries of darkness, the doctors, as their guides. So, when 
they relieve pain, they kill the intelligences that convey the 
friendly, urgent messages. 

It is of no consequence which of the conditions may cause 
the message to be sent to the brain, announcing that there 
is some obstruction in the body that should at once be re- 
moved. It is not the obstruction that causes the pain. It 
is not the bullet that has passed through the chest that has 
caused the pain. It is not the splinter in the toe that causes 
the pain. It is not the toe that is the cause of the pain from 
the splinter. Neither the toe nor the splinter are the cause* 
of the pain. It is not the fact that the young lady has a 
uterus that causes the pain. Nor is it because she is at fault 
concerning any make-up of the body; but the pain arises be- 
cause there is some obstruction and some effete material in 
in that body, or in some special part of the body (fallopian 
tubes or mouth of the uterus), which does not permit the 
menstrual discharge to pass out, and so there is a message 
from the uterus to the brain to this effect, and this is a pain- 
ful sensation and this is called a pain. If the discharge 
passes out freely and there is no obstruction, there will be no 
pain and the young lady will only know of its passing out by 
the sensation of moisture. This is as it should be and as it 
is in many latitudes, and as it will be in any young lady 
who learns to take care of her body properly. 

"What then is it that produces this pain ? 

In the case of the splinter in the toe, the vital force that is 
in the toe sends a message from the parts surrounding the 
splinter and telegraphs a message to the brain, and that mes- 
sage is one of anxiety and distress, and that message you 
call pain. Place your feet, after they have been fatigued b}' 
long walking and are sweat}' and dust}', in a bath tub of 
warm, nice soft water, and you will find there are soothing 
messages come from those feet to tell you that those feet are 
enjoying themselves. 



120 Painful Menstruation. 

But take them out and attempt to walk over some places 
where there are broken glass bottles, and you will not have 
the same soothing messages from your feet as you did while 
they were in the nice and soft warm water. 

Why? 

Because they are in a different place and they can not tell 
you the same things as they did when they were in the warm 
water. 

The feet are the same. 

And the nerves are the same. 

The same intelligence is in the brain and the same nerves 
are between the feet and the brain. But the conditions of 
the feet are different, and thus you have, in one case a sooth- 
ing message, and in the other a message of pain. 

In the case of painful menstruation the message is from 
the uterus or from the fallopian tubes, or from the nerves 
surrounding the organs of generation. But the vital force 
sends the message, and that vital force is the life power in 
the body. 

Have you entered into this idea of having pain ? 

Do you think you can define pain so that you will know 
the next time you have some pain, what that pain is ? 
Pain is a message, a telegram from some place, for some 
purpose, to the brain. 

Let us repeat this lesson, for, while young, it is best for 
us to learn about ourselves and about our bodies so as to 
keep them " Temples of the Hoty Ghost." 

Let us have this idea that pain is a message, and if we can 
understand that message we can go to work with the laws of 
G-od to aid us and do valiantly for God and the elevation of 
our race. 

That is about pain. 

What is pain ? 

Pain is not disease. Note that again. It is not needed 
to have disease to have a pain. 

But there must be a condition that is unnatural in the 
body before one can feel a pain, because what is called a 
pain is a message that is unpleasant. 



Painful Menstruation. 121 

An unpleasant message is a pain. As long as there is no 
message there is no pain. 

But when the message comes to tell you of some condi- 
tion that is wrong in the estimation of the vital force, then 
there will come what is termed a painful sensation. 

The condition of pain is a condition where the body is de- 
parted from its natural state by reason of illness, or by reason 
of an accident, or by reason of its condition, or because of 
some obstruction that the vital force can not get out of the 
body without aid. 

If we are now fairly able to understand about pain, we 
may take up the condition of painful menstruation. 

If there is any pain it is because there is an obstruction 
that should be hastened out of the body. 

The natural outlets are obstructed. There is some cause 
for the obstruction. 

And with that obstruction to the natural flow, there is 
something that telegraphs to the brain that this flow is ob- 
structed by this obstacle and must be removed. 

Then follow waves of messages that the vital force is con- 
stantly sending up to the brain and which make the young 
lady wish there was no world to live in, and wonder why we 
could not have grown on trees and fallen off when we were 
ripe. 

But we will look after that obstruction and see from where 
it comes and what to do so as to be clear of this pain. 

First. The feet being cold will produce a condition of 
dead blood corpuscles that are not able (because, being dead 
they can do nothing) to go through the capillaries, and, as 
they do not go through these fine tubes so as to return to 
the heart, they clog up the fine arteries, and there is a con- 
dition that is called congestion. 

The uterus is filled with dead blood corpuscles that can 
not get out, and as the vital force can not get them out, so 
the vital force telegraphs to the brain that there is some con- 
dition that is needing attention in that part of the ho&y. 

Tight shoes produce this condition and so also the tight 
stockings that are in these tight shoes. 



122 Painful Menstruation. 

Second. Constipation will produce a condition of dead 
blood corpuscles that will fill up the elastic womb and 
thus produce a condition of stuffing these capillaries, thus 
bringing the condition of stoppage of these blood vessels, 
and when these blood vessels are stopped from having a free 
flow, there is another message to the brain of this condition, 
and this message is unpleasant, and is called a pain. 

Third. The garter around the leg just below the knee will 
cause a faulty flow of blood, and these faulty conditions will 
show themselves on the circulation of the uterus, and thus we 
will have some more unpleasant messages that are called 
painful. 

Fourth. The food we eat will have an effect on the circu- 
lation, and if that food is largely composed of starch and 
materials that can not make stout corpuscles, and the blood 
corpuscles are weakly and can not stand any degree of 
cold, when the cold air strikes the lower part of the 
abdomen, there will be a quantity of dead corpuscles, 
and then we shall have this congestion and more painful 
messages. 

Pastries, eggs, coffee, tea, pork, clams, oysters, candies, 
fried cakes, and all kinds of fried things that are cooked in 
grease, baking powder biscuit or cake, butter and milk (un- 
less the milk is thoroughly digested), will all have an effect 
on the blood. And if this blood is not good there will 
be a weakness that can not be overcome by any artificial 
means (as of anything in the shape of medicines), and 
the corpuscles will die, and then we will have some 
more of these messages that are unpleasant, and we say 
there is a pain. 

Fifth. The corset that impedes the circulation of the 
bowels, which should be free and equal, is often one of the 
causes of the condition that brings about the messages that 
we do not wish to have, and thus the corset is one of the 
frequent producing causes of a congested uterus and its ap- 
pendages. In fact, the corset is one of the most frequent of 
all these conditions and is one of the causes of so much 
death from what is called consumption, but it is often over- 



Painful Menstruation. 123 

looked by the things which go around under hats and are 
named doctors. The mother who allows the daughter to 
wear a corset, under any condition, is just as bad as the fool 
mother of the Fiji Islands, who files the teeth to a point, 
and places a big ring in the nose. A small waist and a pain- 
ful menstruation go together, hand in hand. 

Sixth. Cold food, that is bolted down in a hurry, is an- 
other cause of congestion. This cold food, which may be 
of raw apples, not properly chewed up, and the skins, are 
frequent causes of clogging of the intestines, and are some 
of the things that are the base of this condition of conges- 
tion. So, too, the custards that slip down the throat so 
easity. They are not digested, and when they are in the 
small intestines they will not pass any farther, and thus be- 
come cold, clammy masses of dead swill, and prevent the 
circulation from being as rapid as it should be through the 
intestines, and we have some more of these messages that 
are unpleasant, and we cry for some morphine to relieve us 
from these pains. 

Seventh. The young lady does not take in a sufficient 
quantity of water to have the blood corpuscles in a good con- 
dition, and because this water is not in the system, the blood 
corpuscles are laden with materials which should have been 
passed off, and so there are some disagreeable messages 
which are known by the name of pain. 

The books tell us that painful menstruation may arise 
from a "contracted os, " or a "contracted uterus," or a 
"contracted state of the fallopian tubes." Or, there may 
be some ' ' congestion. " 

These books advise the young practitioner to have an ex- 
amination of the young lady and insert a " sound "( which is 
a crooked piece of steel ) into the os (mouth of the uterus), 
and then give this young lad} r with the unpleasant messages, 
some "wine of steel" and some "iron" and some "mor- 
phia " to relieve the distress. 

And these old professors who graduate these } T oung men 
to "alleviate the sorrows of life " go ahead with their devil- 
ish crooked steel and their poisons, and thus the}' ruin 



124 Painful Menstruation. 

thousands of young ladies who should never have had any 
examination, nor any " pain " if they would only have taken 
hold of the natural laws and obeyed them. 

We have no patience with these doctors who are always 
advising these unnatural ideas, and we do not think it is for 
the best interests of this world that every young student 
shall have an opportunity to experiment on the daughter who 
will be the comfort in our old age if she is well, and if she 
is sick she will be a care and a burden and a solicitude which 
is beyond description. 

We love our dear gir and there shall nothing be allowed 
to come between them and health if we know how to prevent 
it. Much more will we struggle to have them understand 
the laws of life so as to keep from these latter day anti- 
christs, the regular allopathic physicians. 

Now for the first. 

Wear wide shoes and loose woolen stockings in the winter, 
and if the feet are yet cold, see that you have a pair of 
boots to go out in the snow with. Change the foot wear 
every day and have as comfortable feet as if you thought 
your entire brains were in your feet. 

Wash those feet daily and see that every crack and every 
crevice is thoroughly cleaned between the toes with an old 
toothbrush and soap, and wiped thoroughly dry. If you get 
wet while you are out, change the foot wear at once when 
you come in and wash the feet in cold water unless at the 
time you are unwell. 

Have the shoes made to order, and do not purchase the 
miserable articles known as high heeled shoes, nor any of 
the paper things which are sold for the articles of fashion. 
You will live longer to let these fashionable shoes remain in 
the shops and you go to some shoemaker and have a good 
pair made which will fit your feet. Have them made wide 
and sensible with low heels, and you will have more comfort 
with them than with all the fashionable things that every one 
in the world will see you wear all the year, without liking 
you a particle better. 

Do you wear any slippers in the fall and early winter ? 



Painful Menstruation. 125 

Do not wear slippers when vou are about the house work and 
liable to take cold. 

Then if your feet are cold after you have paid attention 
to all of these things, we advise you to have a walk every 
day, and take as much of a walk as will make you nice and 
and warm when you come back to the house. Do not be 
afraid of a three-mile walk. Do not be afraid of a ten-mile 
walk. This walking is all the better if you are weakly and 
puny, for it will bring the roses into your cheeks quicker 
than all of the tonics which the doctors and the evil spirits 
have ever concocted. 

Don't forget it. Walking is one of the good things for 
your body and is one of the best things to remove the lack 
of circulation which is the cause of cold feet. But you can 
not walk in the fashionable shoes of the day nor walk with 
the high heels which have been so much the fashion during 
the past few years and sold under the names of the < < French 
heels. " 

Let the French and the demi-monde wear the high-heeled 
shoes if they wish, but do you allow your feet to have a 
good circulation and we surely will have one of the causes 
of cold and congested uterus out of the way. 

Second. Constipation. One of the reasons of so much 
and so persistent constipation lies in the food which is eaten. 
Fine flour bread is one of these causes. Graham is best and 
should be eaten to the exclusion of all of the fine flour which 
is made. But the graham which is too often sold by the 
grocers, is not graham, but a mixture of fine flour and bran. 
G-ood graham is made by grinding whole wheat and leaving 
it unbolted. This takes in all the elements of nutrition and 
is much better for sustenance than the fine flour. 

If food does not regulate the bowels, do not hesitate for a 
day, but take a syringe and pump up into the bowels at the 
least from three to five quarts of warm water every night be- 
fore you go to bed. 

If you are bad and think that there is no relief from con- 
stipation, then let this water stay up in the bowels as long as 
you can hold it and rub the bowels gently so as to get rid of 



126 



Painful Menstruation. 



cakes which are liable to be on the inside of the intestines 
and which are one of the causes of this constipated habit. 
This injection should be used before you have any bad time 
with the menses. It should be used every day until you are 
rid of all pains and the bowels are in the best of order. 

While the pain is on, that is, while there is pain during 
menstruation, it is a great benefit to take an injection of a 
weak penn}Toyal infusion, and you can use as much as five 
quarts so as to thoroughly cleanse the bowels, and this will 
also relax the uterus and the appendages so that there will 
be no contraction and the pain will disappear as if by magic. 

The cause of these unpleasant telegrams is in the nerves. 
But mark, if there is no obstruction the nerves will not tele- 
graph a lie, and you will be free and easy. Not a pain. 

We say, in the use of these large injections to the bowels, 
you will find more relief than from any courses of medicine 
which can be given. And mark: These injections are to be 
made large enough to not alone relieve the bowels and pro 
cure a good passage of the bowels, but they are to be made 
large for the purpose of washing out and cleansing the small 
intestines of their refuse stuff and thus of relieving the uterus 
of any pressure from these stuffed small intestines; and also 
for the purpose of relaxing all the capillaries and allowing 
the obstructions to be forced out of the body. Because, 
when these intestines are filled and stuffed with the feces 
which should have been passed off long ago, then the uterus 
is pressed out of shape and out of place, and thus there are 
many of the messages from these parts which tell, in the lan- 
guage of the vital force, there is some obstruction which 
should be removed. And this large injection will remove it 
as certainly as the obstruction is there. You need not be 
afraid of using too much, as we have frequently used three 
and four quarts, and sometimes we have had an injection 
given into the bowels which would cause the water to run 
from the mouth. This does not sound reasonable. But we 
have seen it and the lady recovered of her very distressing 
disease. 

We repeat that m the second place, you need to use large 



Painful Menstruation. 127 

injections of warm water and to have the food correct to 
cure constipation, and it will surely do it. And, finally, for 
this constipated habit, we tell you to go without the sup- 
per, and also to fast as often as three nights in the week. 
Do not be afraid to go without your supper and to go with- 
out any water to drink at the time you are fasting. Water is 
all right as a drink, and we do not know of any better thing 
to use and to take into the body in that state which we call 
constipation, than cold water; but when fasting, we advise 
you not to touch any water. 

At the times you are not fasting, it is the best thing to 
do to drink plenty of water so as to give the 25,000,000,000 
of red blood corpuscles a drink and allow them to have 
liquid sufficient to cleanse their little economies. 

Think this over, for there is much more in it than appears 
on the surface. Drink all the watei you desire while you are 
not fasting, and take some that you may not have any desire 
for, if you are of a constipated habit. It will not hurt you 
to take from three to seven, or even sixteen glasses of cool 
soft water in the morning when the body is out of order and 
needs to have this life-giving liquid to assuage the conditions 
of the body which are called by the name of fever. 

The blood needs to have water and can not be run in good 
health without water and an abundance of it. We advise 
you to take a drink of water every morning and every night, 
if you are not in good health, but in the case of painful men- 
struation you may be doubly assured that there is not liquid 
enough in the system, and the more water that is drank be- 
fore the menstrual period is on, the better you will go 
through this cleansing process, menstruating. 

Kecapitulation for this constipation: Food, habits, drink, 
large injections to the bowels daily and fasting at the least 
from three to five meals a week, or to live on two meals a 
day. Occasionally, we advise you to go without all food for 
an entire day or even three days, if you can stand it. Do not 
eat anything while there is any pain during the menstrual 
period. Never eat while in any pain. 

Fasting is one of the greatest remedies for pain which has 



128 Painful Menstruation. 

ever been divulged to mankind. Why? Because fasting re- 
duces the size of the blood corpuscles and allows them to 
flow more readily through the capillaries and so reduces the 
congestions and all swellings. Fasting thins the blood and 
reduces the spleen and liver in size. Make it a habit to fast 
two to five meals a week, or else eat two meals a day. 

Third. The garter. Have all your stockings held up by 
some straps over your shoulder. Don't fool away another 
penny until you have these articles in the best of shape, and 
have three or four pairs of these straps to fit your shoulders 
while you are at it. 

Fourth. Food. We have given you some hints as to 
food, and we just stop here to say that the natural food of 
man is bread and fruit. Eat this fruit in any manner you 
choose, but eat it at the meal times and do not make a pig 
of yourself by gormandizing this fruit between meals and 
then say it does you no good. While you have bread for 
dinner, pare a good ripe apple and eat this apple with your 
bread. But do not eat ripe or unripe or raw apples at any 
time unless you have a piece of bread to be eaten with them. 
Never eat the skins under an}* consideration, nor the core, 
nor anything that might be a nest for the eggs of worms. 

Fifth. The corset. Have the dresses fitted over an 
under-waist and you will have a nicer form than is possible 
to have with anything on earth in the shape of a corset. 
Have an under-waist and do not have this under-waist too 
tight. If it is possible, have all the skirts hang from straps 
Over the shoulder. Keep the waist and the lungs free and 
readj r at all times to be filled with the best tonic in the world 
— pure air. 

Sixth. Food should never be eaten in a hurry; and if you 
can not have time to eat your food, we advise you to wait 
until night and eat slowly, and chew up what you do eat, so 
as not to have a mass of this undigested food in the stomach. 
There are plenty of people who have only one meal a day, 
and they live and are well. 

The habit of eating three meals is a habit of gluttony. 
We would all be better if there would be less eaten 



Painful Menstruation. 129 

Whatever food you eat should not contain too much starch, 
as the excess of starch is undigested and goes into the blood 
as starch, which is not good for the bod}'. This is one 
of the reasons so much of the disease called "whites " or 
" leucorrhea, " and a falling of the womb, are so common 
diseases — almost universal. 

There is another thing about the food that is not known. 
It is this: When there is not too much eaten nature has a 
chance to use up all the best of what is eaten. But if there 
is too much eaten, it makes one really poor to carry this 
around. This is a fact, and accounts for the other fact that 
some of those who have encountered what are termed ' ' hard- 
ships " during this life, are among those who live the long- 
est. And those who have a good time in this world are 
those who are soonest sent out of this world and into the 
graveyard. Think this over a little. 

Do not let the popular idea of eating for strength pester 
you for a moment. It is not true that one can eat so much 
as to force the strength by eating an abundance of food. 

It is what is eaten and digested that gives the strength. Not 
what is placed in one's stomach. 

We come to the seventh proposition, and we say in this 
seventh is all the rest included. 

If the blood corpuscles are in good order and are in good 
trim, with a sufficient quantity of liquid to clean themselves, 
there will be no trouble in having all the rest of the body in 
the best of condition. We say this in the most emphatic 
language that we can command. If the blood corpuscles 
are in good order then the body will be in good health. And 
there is no scheme of medication that is of any value that 
does not include all the systems of keeping the entire body 
clean and clear from the seeds of disease. So that when a 
young lady does not daily take in water enough to run her 
body and give the 25,000,000,000 red blood corpuscles a 
daily drink, she will surely have some trouble somewhere. 

And so we come back to our original proposition, to have 
enough of this water in the S} r stem ; drink from one to three 
glasses every morning unless there is some reason to prevent 
I 



130 Painful Menstruation. 

you from drinking enough to wash out all of the body, and 
to have all of the outlets of the body flushed out daily. 

Take some clean water, nry daughter, and give your army 
of red blood corpuscles a happy drink, and enough to wash 
their little faces. 

We call to mind a case that had baffled all the physicians 
of a certain eit}-, and the } T oung lady was nearly wild every 
period. We advised the attending lady physician to place 
her in a full warm bath and keep her there as long as she 
could stand it. Sa}- a full hour, if she would stay lying down 
in the bath, covered with hot water, and at the same time to 
give her freely of the infusion of Virginia snake root. The 
young lady was better right away, and entirely recovered on 
this treatment. 

If there is airything that could be called a specific for any 
and all kinds of painful menstruation, it is a mild infusion 
of this article, Virginia snake root. Usually, this infusion 
which is made from the root bought at the corner drug store, 
is a nasty, bitter dose. But if the root is at all fresh, 
and it is not made too strong, it is not so bad to take, and 
it is of the, greatest benefit to at once relax the tissues and 
promote the flow. 

Place a pinch in a cup and turn full of boiling water. 
Sweeten a little, if nauseating, and drink as the stomach will 
bear, and after a little drink another cupful. The warm 
water may have as much to do with the speedy relief as the 
virtues of the snake root. But it is sure that there will not 
be much of an} r relief from the use of the fluid extract. If 
there is a home-made tincture it might answer, but we have 
found the warm infusion to be by far the best to allay the 
excruciating pains that arise from contraction and conges- 
tion. 

As it is not every one who has the full bath tub to lie 
down in, it is well to know that the injection to the bowels, 
the hot foot bath and the infusion will answer the purpose in 
a very short time, without the necessit3 r for any of the poison 
narcotics that the doctors give to destroy the nerves and 
poison the intelligence. 



Painful Menstruation. 131 

Shall we tell you anything else? Just a word. If the 
dear mothers and the overburdened fathers would take a 
little time and shoo the story papers out of the house, and 
fling all the novels and lies into the cook stove, and then sit 
down and have a real good loving talk with the daughter 
about herself, so that she understands her own being and the 
objects of her own body, and knows how to take care of her- 
self, the doctors would have less to do and there would be 
fewer ruined women to be suffering the agonies of death, 
without relief, and a large increase of happiness all round. 



CHAPTER XII. 
THE BEGINNINGS OP ERROR. 

According to the age of a girl, there comes a time when 
she knows what passion is. At one time or another, the 
valves from certain arteries are open and there follows a 
thrill which, though faint, is tremulously delicious and pain- 
fully sweet. 

This passion, or the first appearance of this passion, is de- 
ferred in some to past the age of twenty. To others it is a 
fact at the age of four. Whenever this feeling appears, or 
wherever it appears (boy or girl), there is a desire to renew 
the feeling, which, although of a swift, fleeting passage, is a 
play and a vibration on every nerve in the system. This 
thrill of passion results in a loss of nervous force. When 
this nervous force is over, the passion is gone. The thrill 
has departed. The body can not be aroused again (for a 
short time is this true) to renew this passionate thrill. 

Now, although it is true that the prime seat of this passion 
(in the girl) lies in the clitoris or in the intense filling of all 
the blood vessels in the genito-urinary organs, or in the 
vulva, yet it happens that there are points on the body that 
seem to open these floodgates of passion, and to these points 
we call your especial attention at this time. It is often that 
error and destruction commence at these points. 

First, the breasts. Why it is that simply handling or 
rubbing the breasts provokes the flow of blood to the vulva 
and arouses sexual passion can not be satisfactorily ex- 
plained. But it is a fact that we desire you to note. 

Second. There is a spot on each side of the neck, that 
when kissed or fondled provokes the same sexual passion. 

Third. The kissing of the lips. 

Outside of the absolute contact of warmth, friction, moist- 
ure, animal magnetism and passions embrace with the gen- 
ito-urinary organs, we have three points of attack, by which 
the members of the other sex endeavor to gain the control of 

132 



The Beginnings of Error. 



133 



your body, and to arouse and fire your passions, or array the 
animal against the spiritual or mental. These passions are 
based upon one fact, and if you understand the cause of them 
you can never be approached at any disadvantage. The 
causes of passion may be stated: 

1. The blood must fill up the cntoris, the vulva and pos- 
sibly the arterial system surrounding the uterus. 

2. If you have a system of arteries that are rapidly filled 
so as to make the parts full, turgid and stagnant. If this 
occurs, you are already filled with passion. 

The ignorance of these two points has lost many a girl 
her virtue and her honor. She is already assailed in her own 
person with these passions. Added to these fires, she allows 
contact with the hands or the person in one of the three 
" points of attack" which we have previously called your 
attention to, viz. : the breasts, the neck and the lips ; and if 
the pressure or animal magnetism is sustained at any of 
these points, there comes a time when bodily passion overcomes 
all mental resolves and you yield your body to passion. You 
are lost. 

It is true that many have yielded to the embraces of a man 
and yet stopped short of sexual intercourse. 

This is true, because some men are afraid, and some are 
conscientious. But we lay it down as a rule, and one that 
you will never regret having followed, that the man who 
caresses }*ou, the man who desires to fondle } T our breasts, 
rub your neck or kiss you on the lips is the one who is do- 
ing his level best to have intercourse with you, and who is 
trying to ruin you, no matter all his protestations to the con- 
trary. 

We should maKe a concession to ignorance at this place 
and acknowledge that in cases of lovers there are cases where 
the man kisses and fondles a woman because he loves her, 
and as he confidently expects to be married, he thinks he 
has a right to caress the woman who is to be his wife. 

We have given our opinion of that folly in another chap- 
ter. It is a folly and a mistake for the woman to allow the 
beginning of this fondling and caressing. 



134 The Beginnings of Error. 

But every girl is liable to be so approached, and as this 
approach is subtle and gradual we will state our ideas of pre- 
venting these beginnings of error. 

First. We do not think it possible for any one to be 
strictly pure and virtuous unless helped from the outside. 
Passion is too strong. Flesh too weak. Education of these 
matters is so limited that there is really nothing for a girl to 
go by except native modesty and common sense, and the 
devil can always find some way to overcome these where he 
desires to ruin a girl. 

We say then, — get help. 

You ask, "How?" 

The reply is : God made you for a purpose. He desires 
you to be strong. He desires not only your body to be pure, 
but also the mind, soul or spirit. 

For this purpose God sent His Son. And the Son on his 
departure sent the Comforter. (This word, Comforter, in the 
Greek is Paraclete, which word signifies an advocate and a 
strengthener. ) 

This is the Holy Ghost, the Holy Spirit and the Spirit 
of Truth. Christ sends this Spirit to all who believe 
on Him. You, therefore, have two great helps to aid 
and strength. The Comforter and your book of instruc- 
tions — the Bible. 

We urge you to get this help before any temptation or evil 
comes on you. Prepare for these trials as one should pre- 
pare for the winter or for a rain storm. The Holy Spirit is 
sent to all who believe that Jesus was the Christ. We hope 
you believe it. If you do not already, the belief of this is 
of the first importance. Our advice is this. Bead the Bible 
daily and pray for help and strength and the assistance of 
the Holy Spirit. 

Having done this you should not neglect any of the earthly 
laws which God has placed before you. 

You should keep perfectly clean. 

By clean we mean that upon' your person there should be 
no stain, spot or discharge. Eveiything which makes an ob- 
struction to the skin or remains to clog up the skin in any 



The Beginnings of Error. 135 

manner will render you the more passionate and your 
passions more ungovernable at the time of trial. 

Cleanliness is therefore of the first importance. 

Second. At once, as soon as }-ou have resolved that you 
desire to be a perfect woman, fight down, conquer and stamp 
out every bit of passion that you may have in your body. 

As we have said, the cause of this passion is the filling of 
certain places with blood. Certain arteries and places that 
do not habitually and should not have any quantity of blood 
— or an excess of blood in them. 

We say keep that blood away from them, and control that 
passion. Do not allow a particle of the nervous force to be 
lost. Shut up those arteries and contract them. Keep the 
blood out of those parts and you can control the passion so 
that you need not allow any unforeseen accident or design to 
have any control over you. 

If there is heat, wash in cold water. It is all right for you 
to bathe all your body in cold water at any period when the 
the menses are not on. And, if you have begun to fight 
down these passions, you will find that, from one cause or 
another, you are more passionate directly after the menstrual 
period. 

For cleanliness, if more agreeable, use warm water and 
soap, if according to your ideas. But to fight passion sit 
down or continue to bathe in cold water until the excess of 
blood is returned to the general circulation and the passion 
is entirely gone. All this can be done if the mind is kept 
from the opposite sex. If you can not banish the images of 
passionate desire from your brain you need work — active, 
hard labor. 

Walking, digging, washing, lifting, gjmmastics, or, in fact, 
an} r thing that will call away the blood from the generative 
organs and place the brain on a healthy, equable plane. 

You may rest assured that until you have conquered 
every atom of passion and every feather of desire for 
sexual gratification, that you are liable to become the victim 
of some man's lust or desire. And j-ou may depend upon 
it that if you are not the mistress and controller of your own 



136 The Beginnings op Error. 

body, that the time comes when some one else will control 
you to your intense despair and to your eternal sorrow and 
agonizing shame. 

The moment you feel any passion, fight it. Bathe in cold 
water. Walk, ride, get up and get out of your surround- 
ings. In the night — in the day — fight the passion until you 
are absolutely the controller of that system of arteries. 

Third. To assist you to control yourself let us repeat that 
eggs, oysters, wine, potatoes, coffee, tea, and meats of all kinds, 
especially anything from the hog, pork, ham, lard and grease, 
taken into the body as food are, in a manner, irritating to the 
blood and are provocative of passion. Let all these things 
alone as food. 

Oysters are direct passion producers, and thousands of 
virtuous girls have been seduced while assailed by the fried 
oysters and wine within and a smooth villain of a man on the 
outside. 

Never touch wine, under any consideration. 

Coffee clogs the liver and so thickens the blood. One can 
not be virtuous and chaste and drink coffee. Coffee is a 
virtue destroyer. 

Tea is a filthy, scabby drink. It weakens the kidneys and 
makes the whites. It causes wrinkles and softens the brain. 
It weakens virtuous resolves and destroys will power. While 
one pours tea into the body, the body becomes rotten and 
unfit as a dwelling place for the Holy Ghost. 

Keep the body clean and the Holy Ghost shall dwell in 
you. But if the body is filled with these abominations you 
can not expect to control it by the operations of the mind. 

Heavy suppers are another destructive element in the body. 
Do not allow yourself to indulge in them. Eat a crust and 
take a cup of cold water if you are faint, but if you can, 
while you are fighting down this passion, go without your 
supper. 

Bear in mind that there is always a worst time. Conquer 
that worst time and you are the victor. If the passion con- 
quers you once, try again with renewed courage in God. Do 
not think that one resolve, nor one action is to render you 




The Arteries of the Female Gen i to-urinary System. 

The object of this figure is to show the network of arteries whicli 
surround the labia and the clitoris, and impress this fact upon the 
reader: that if this blood is kept from these parts there can be no pas- 
sion, and if the blood is allowed to flow into these arteries there will 
be passion. To keep the arteries small, and not to have any, or, at the 
least, the smallest amount of blood in these arteries is of the first 
importance in a life of purity. Fasting, washing, purity of thought, 
and the most absolute cleanliness is the only method by which this 
can be successfully accomplished. 



The Beginnings of Error. 137 

impenetrable and faultless. It takes time. You ma} r fail 
in your mind once or a hundred times, and yet you will and 
must succeed if you persevere. Do not yield to passion an 
atom. Fast if needed. Keep the body actively employed. 
Keep the mind from the thoughts which bring up the least 
approach to heat or passion. 

We know this perfect control of the body and the passions 
can be gained by any girl or any woman who is determined 
to do it. But on the other hand, if one allows this sexual 
passion to once gain the mastery over them, there is an end 
of all intellectual or physical development. 

When one of these women is married who has yielded to 
passion or tried to gratify herself by the unfortunate habits 
of youth, heat and lustful ideas, the marks are carried on the 
body and shown upon the face. But this would not be so 
bad if it were not for the fact that all the body suffers in di- 
rect proportion to this miserable gratification of passion. 
The throat becomes dry and husky, and the voice for sing- 
ing is gone. The eyes become heavy, dull, and sometimes 
the eyelashes are covered with whitish scales. The teeth be- 
come covered with slime and are rotten, from this gratifica- 
tion of the sexual organs. 

The habit of self abuse becomes a second nature, and when 
marriage takes place there is not a particle of gratification 
with the husband. A patient of mine who married one of 
these women who had yielded to these secret gratifications of 
passion, told me that during the first months of his unhappy 
married life he had to rub this unfortunate victim of self 
lust with his hands for an hour after retiring. The result 
was a divorce. Perfect sexual intercourse is never known 
where one or both parties have abused their bodies before 
marriage. 

Keep your bod}* pure and clean. Fight down an}* passion 
now, this minute, and while you take all the precautions to 
have the body pure, read that book of instructions, the 
Bible, and beseech God to aid you by His Spirit. With 
these helps, you can not fail. 

Louisiana. 



CHAPTER XIII. 
THE WEARING APPAREL. 

In regard to the wearing apparel, wear that on the out- 
side which is not conspicuous or showy. You will soon 
learn what colors are good for you and suitable for your 
complexion, your hair and your eyes. Keep away from red, 
yellow, crimson or bright blue. Have your clothes so that 
no one can positively describe you bj T one thing you wear, 
as, " the girl with the red ribbon, "or "the one with bangs," 
or "the girl with the yellow skirt," and all that. KeeD 
away from all efforts at eccentricity. 

In regard to your underwear, we advise, have enough. By 
that, we suggest that you have at least six changes of under- 
garments, and not less than six pairs of stockings for sum- 
mer and six pairs for winter, not less than three nightgowns, 
and if possible, have six. There is always some needy 
woman that has none, and you can make an odd nightdress 
from twenty-five cents' worth of cotton cloth, and the value 
of a clean nightdress when it is needed, is invaluable. 

We do not believe in indiscriminate charity, but a 
nightdress is of more actual service to a sick neighbor, or 
some sick, weakly mother who has been cramped for means to 
supply herself, than any other article of wearing apparel. 
While the prime cost is little, you will do a world of good. 
Have enough for yourself and one or two to do good with. 
Don't think of yourself all the time. Be prepared to help 
those who are weaker and poorer than you. 

Undershirts, stockings, drawers, bands, or anything which 
comes next the skin, should never be red, crimson, yellow, 
blue, or any color which contains any material liable to poison 
the skin. 

Crimson and red are colors which have been known to 
cause a vicious humor of the skin, and you do not want an 
intractable skin disease. White is the safest, cleanest and 

138 



The Wearing Apparel. 139 

best color, and after the white, the natural grey, a very 
light buff or a cream color. Scottish greys are a fair color, 
but are more liable to be poisonous to the skin than the clear 
white. 

Colored stockings are a special abomination. "Wear white 
as much as possible, and if you have to wear black, have 
them thoroughly washed before they go on your feet. The 
blood from the heart goes to the feet direct, and in the case 
of red stockings, when the feet are poisoned with red stock- 
ings, the entire blood becomes poisoned. Pimples come to 
the face from red or analine-colored hosiery. 

Have the shoes made to order. Save enough to have 
good rubbers, good shoes and high slippers. But see to it 
that you do not wear the slippers out of doors or on the 
porch. It creates a feeling of slouchiness to see a girl on 
the street in slippers. And to wear a Mother Hubbard dress 
on the street with the slippers, is sufficient to give you a 
reputation not enviable. 

Whatever you have, do not be in debt for it a penny. Your 
bod}' will be far better in the oldest and cheapest dress you 
can keep whole and clean than in anything which is unpaid 
for. 

The same thing is to be said about cloaks and wraps. Do 
not owe a penny. Do not have a thing on j r ou that is not 
fully paid for and paid for honestly. Keep account of your 
expenditures, and make it an endeavor of your life to have 
the wearing apparel good, clean, whole and becoming. But 
before you think of anything, be sure it is all paid for, and 
paid the last penny. 

We urge this upon you with all the force we can command. 
Do not go into debt for a penny's worth of wearing apparel, 
under an} T circumstances. Keep debt from } r our back and 
your head, and } r ou shall have a beauty and peace in your 
face which will outweigh all the advantages of dress a 
thousand times. 

In the matter of economy, it is the best to purchase the best 
at once. But, as it is almost impossible at once to have access 
to the best grades of fabrics, we advise you to select those 



140 The Wearing Apparel. 

goods of gray, black, or a very dark shade of blue or 
brown, which will make up sober, and become you when 
you wear them. 

There is nothing that will ever make you feel as if you were 
wholly independent until you earn all your own living. To 
earn this living honestly you will do some good hard think- 
ing, and when you do earn it, you will find that there are a 
good many ways of earning the money but there are a thou- 
sand more ways to spend it. We desire to help you to 
save that money. 

You need good clothes and clothes which will look well in 
the house and on the street. We repeat that which is al- 
ready written : Whatever may be your complexion you may 
be sure that any dress of red or any color of purple will 
never become you, nor become any other honest, virtuous 
girl. But nothing can become you which you owe for at the 
store. 

Some one may tell you red is the right thing, and that the 
color is not red but cardinal, or some other name. What 
they may tell you will not weigh an atom if you have good 
sense. No fool color which is the color devoted to the 
women of the town, as are the colors of red and of crimson 
and of purple, will ever be becoming to the girl who intends 
to be straight, honest and upright in herself. If you are a 
blonde, we think that a shade of grey will suit your complex- 
ion. If you are a brunette, we think soft drab or black, or 
if it is in summer you can wear white, if you are sure about 
the expense of the washing. But avoid all pronounced 
colors as you would avoid having your name in the daily 
prints as a street- walker. 

It is your dress, of course. But people will think and 
fools will talk. And if you have a knack of picking out a 
dress of calico or of gingham which you can wear on the 
street and not have the gossips of the town wonder who 
picked it out for you, and if you can be dressed so that 
these -street gossips will keep their tongues off } t ou, there is 
a great point gained in the happiness of your daily life. 

We think if you have some relation who is a friend, or 



The Wearing Apparel. 141 

some one who can tell you of the things you need and who 
can assist you in picking out your dresses and who will give 
3-ou honest advice, it will be well to take the advice. But 
in the case of your being without friends, we think you will 
see that your best way is to do your own thinking and to 
feel as if you were the one to be consulted in the matter. 
Never hurry in your selection of your garments, or be influ- 
enced by the salesman. If you are earning your clothes, or 
the money for those clothes, there will be some thought 
needed to make your wages pa} T for the best when you start out 
in the world. The habit of thinking for yourself will bring 
greater results to you than if you had a friend who could 
carry you on her shoulders and do everything for you while 
you allow your brain to be stagnant. 

These are matters which you will slowly decide for your- 
self. If you have beauty, strength and power, the clothes 
really do not matter. If you lack these attributes, the 
wearing apparel only makes you conspicuous. 



CHAPTEK XIV. 
UNLAWFUL PLEASURES. 

When there is something sought to be enjoyed, which does 
not belong to the one who tries to enjoy the fruits of some 
one's labor besides his own, then this enjoyment is said to 
be unlawful. 

"VVe will take up one phase of this unlawful enjo} T ment and 
look at the result. The young lady who thinks she can en- 
joy some habit all to herself, and in due time she will enjoy 
some one else as a husband, is the one who is going to be 
the greatest deceived person in this world. 

Are there any such ? 

Do we think any young lady will be foolish enough to use 
her own body for such pleasures as should only be allowed 
when children are desired ? 

Can it be possible that any one would be so foolish and so 
stupid as to take away from the one she will love, the 
pleasures which rightly belong to him and to no one else ? 

Is there any girl who is so devoid of understanding as to 
allow the habit of self abuse to overcome her best judgment 
and waste her body in a vain endeavor to feel what can never 
be experienced except with utmost love and with the utmost 
freedom ? 

Are there any so foolish as to imagine that there is some- 
thing which they can do and it will never be found out by 
some one ? 

Can it be possible that any one will have the habit day 
after day to feel of their own body and allow their minds to 
wander to such subjects as are only permitted to those who 
have entered the married state, and should only be permitted 
when the wife and husband desire to have children ? 

Do we think so ? 

Yes. We know there are thousands of these young 
persons, girls as well as bo}'S, who are to-daj- guilty of this 

142 



Unlawful Pleasures. 143 

monstrous habit of self abuse, and are guilty because there are 
none to tell them of its dangers and of its follies, to warn 
them of the horrible results which spring from this abuse of 
the body. 

What are these girls called ? 

In the medical profession these victims to this desire for 
unlawful pleasures are called "female masturbators. " 

The girl thinks she is enjoying herself by this habit, and it 
becomes almost a second nature. 

We are sorry to say this, and if it were not our duty we 
should omit this chapter from this book. But we do not 
think the half has ever been told of the folly of the most 
beautiful and the most gifted of God's creatures who have 
the keeping of two families and so many people in their pos- 
session. 

Do we think this a common habit ? 

We do not think anything about it. W r e know there are 
thousands of families who have been wrecked and made the 
most unhappy in the world by the formation of this habit of 
self abuse when the girl was ripening into womanhood. We 
think the guilt of the male portion of the human family may 
be greatest. We admit that it may be greatest, but from 
our experience and what we can learn of the parties who are 
the victims to illness and to disease, we are of the opinion 
that there are six of one and just an even half dozen of the 
other. 

We do not think there is any radical difference between 
the habits of a family, whether it is the boys or the girls. 

And we have long ago arrived at the conclusion that as for 
the habit of self abuse, it is as bad as the worst can be im- 
agined among the boys. This will sound strange to man}', 
but as we are writing this in the best interests of the world, 
and for our own children, we have no interest in holding to 
or keeping up a falsehood. And it is said as deliberately 
as we should say it, there are as many who eat among the 
females as there are who eat of the males. 

It is too bad to say this. We are sorry to say it and if 
we did not think it best for the mothers to know about their 



144 Unlawful Pleasures. 

daughters, we should never have placed it on the paper. But 
we believe it to be a fact. We think after there has been 
one cause of disease taken out from the category of the be- 
ginning of female diseases, there is one which wili take pre- 
eminence of all the others, and this cause is self abuse 
among the girls. 

It is certainly a dreadful thing to sa}' that the girl is no 
better than the boy. But we think in the interests of truth 
there should be the truth told if it does cut some one's feel- 
ings, and it is better to know what one is fighting than to 
fight in the dark. 

And we repeat this statement, that there are almost, if not 
quite, as many girls who are addicted to this habit of self 
abuse as there are boj's. 

WI13* should there not be ? 

The}' eat the same food, do the same things, and sit in the 
house even more than the boys, and the reasons wh} T they 
should do this evil are as great among them as among the 
boys. 

Do we think this can be proved ? Ask any physician who 
is honest, what are the prime causes of all the female disease 
and he will tell you that the self abuse is one of the greatest 
causes in the world 

Examine now, if it suit }T>u, the females who are sick, and 
get them to say whether they have ever been guilty of this 
habit, and it will surprise the most incredulous as to the ex- 
tent of this self abuse among the girls. 

We say this is the fact. There is no one cause of the so- 
called " female disease" which is so prevalent as the habit of 
self abuse among the female sex. When we consider that 
the o\ T sters and the eggs and the tea and coffee are all 
of them provocative of the desires for sexual gratification, 
then we must suppose that the females are angels or that 
they are different in their composition from the male part of 
this earth. We do not think this. We know from what we 
have seen that the women are just as liable to have these 
sexual passions as the men. 

When they do have them and they make a mistake and allow 




Wi 



Vertical section of Female Grenito-urinary Organs, giving 
lateral view of Pelvic Viscera laid open — right side. 



a Last lumbar A^ertebra. o 

b Os sacrum. p 

c Os coccygis. q 

d Os pubis. r 
e Intestinum rectum, 

f Anus. s 

g Vesica urinaria. t 

h Urachus, lig. vesicae medium, u 

i Urethra. v 

k Orificium urethra' externum. w 

I Labium pudendi externum. x 
m Labium internum, nympha. y 

II Glaus clitoridis. z 



Corpus cavernosum clitoridis. 

Oriricium vaginas. 

Vagina. 

Portio vaginalis uteri, with os 

uteri externum. 
Cavum uteri. 
Canalis colli uteri. 
Fundus uteri. 
Ovarium. 
Tuba Fallopii. 
Fimbriae v. laciniae. 
Peritonaeum. 
Perimeum. 



Unlawful Pleasures. 145 

themselves to be persuaded into doing something for which 
they alone are the sufferers, then we say, ' k She is fallen. " 
But we should say she is but one who has shown her passion 
while there are thousands who are equally guilty and they 
are not found out. 

We can not think the women who have the same make-up 
to the body are really any different in their feelings from 
the men. They certainly are not. It is one of the follies of 
life to think the girl can eat any and all of the things which 
we know will produce passion in the male, and yet be per- 
fectly harmless and pure in thought. It could not be. 

And from the experience of half a century, thirty-five 
years of which have been spent in direct communication with 
the human race, I do not hesitate to assert that the habit of 
self abuse is one of the greatest causes of the evils and the 
diseases of the female sex. The habit is one which is easily 
learned and is taught by one girl to another, and there is no 
way of finding it out, so that the fond mother and father 
who see the daughter go into a decline, or into consump- 
tion, fondly imagine there is some germ which, if they could 
get hold of, would cure their dear daughter. 

While they are praying to heaven to aid them in their 
search for a doctor or some medicine, the girl is daily at the 
task of destruction which will one day lay her in the ground. 

We have had some experience in this life, and we have no 
hesitation in saying that as far as our experience goes, there is 
as much of this habit among the daughters as among the sons. 

How shall we eradicate this bestial habit ? 

Not by sitting down and complaining about it. This will 
not do any good. We have to take hold of the facts as we 
find them and see that we are educating these children so 
that they will not be guilty of these crimes any more. We 
must educate. 

This is our tasK. 

The girl who first feels the sexual passion has some 

changes in her body which she does not know the meaning of. 

When the passion is allowed to be felt, unrestrained, there 

is a descent of the womb into the vagina, and this is so, be- 

K 



1-46 Unlawful Pleasures. 

cause the womb, if there is to be a sexual orgasm, will be 
in the best position to discharge the mucous from the womb 
into the vagina and lubricate all the parts, both for the sex- 
ual act, and, if there are to be children (for this act was 
never contemplated except for the purpose of procreating, and 
having offspring), the womb, having discharged all of its 
mucous, will be in a condition to take and to absorb the 
semen from the male. 

There are two points' at this place which are worthy of 
careful consideration. 

First. There is the discharge from the womb, so that the 
womb will be empt} r and ready to receive the semen from the 
male. 

Second. If this womb has no semen at hand or close 
by to enter the womb at the moment of its discharge, it will 
have an emptiness there which will leave the womb dry, 
turgid and heated. 

These points are two of the things or states which are not 
so far as we know, laid down in any book. 

(Note. There is a book which we have seen, "Satan 
in Society," which is written by a physician, who affirms in 
his preface he has not the the courage to own his name to 
his work. In this book there is laid down the correct prop- 
osition which is that ' < unless the womb at the time of the 
sexual orgasm has the semen of the man it will become dis- 
eased. " This is the only hint, so far as we have been able 
to read, of the injury done to the female sex by this habit 
of self abuse.) 

But we call the very particular attention to these two 
states, and ask the mother and the daughter to look at the 
consequences of this self abuse of the body and this gratifi- 
cation of the person with these unlawful pleasures. 

First. The womb descends. When this womb descends 
and has the semen to moisten it, there is the ascent again 
and the womb is again in its natural place. 

But if there is no semen and no moisture, there will be a 
permanent staying down of this womb and the woman will 
have falling of the womb. 



Unlawful Pleasures. 147 

We say deliberately, if there is self abuse by the girl, 
there is more likely to be the falling of the womb in her be- 
cause of this lack of any compensation to the womb for its 
loss of the mucous which was in it before the sexual orgasm. 
Before the orgasm and before the passion there was some 
mucous to fill the womb and to keep it moist. But after the 
orgasm, there is dryness in the womb and the womb becomes 
dry and is of no account to support itself, as it is dead to all 
feeling after the sexual orgasm, or the passion without inter- 
course, is over. This is one of the laws which any one can 
see if they will reflect upon the position of the womb and 
the condition of this organ when it descends upon the ap- 
proach of passion. While the passion is on, there is a heat 
in the parts and the excitement is of so great and stimulat- 
ing a nature that there are no ailments felt. 

When the orgasm and the passion are once over, the re- 
lapse is one of quick despondency and ill feelings. This is 
not said to frighten any one from the act. It is the truth, 
and a truth which can be seen any day by looking on the 
street and examining the faces of the girls who are guilty of 
this habit. We repeat, this is one of the important facts of 
this chapter that the orgasm and passion of the girl finds the 
womb in a full condition of mucous, which is necessary for 
its preservation and its supply, and when this orgasm is over, 
this mucous has been placed outside of the womb into the 
vagina and from there it flows away, so that there must be 
more of this mucous taken from the rest of the system to 
supply this waste and this loss. 

The womb after this passion is over is empty and hard. 
There has been nothing to moisten it and the moisture which 
was there from nature's supply has been thrown away when 
the passion is gratified. 

This habit also causes constipation and this constipation is 
because the rectum is partially paralyzed with this feeling of 
passion, and can not tell when the feces are in sufficient 
quantity to pass out of the bowels. 

Constipation is an evil of so great proportions that all the 
diseases of the female sex have been laid to this one fault of 



148 Unlawful Pleasures. 

the economy. But if tbe other habits are good there will 
be soon an end to constipation. 

We said the womb descends. 

With this descent of the womb there is the lengthening of 
the ligaments of the womb, and very soon after this habit of 
self abuse is commenced there is a dragging of the lower 
bowels, and the whites follow this condition as readily as the 
night follows the day. 

The whites is the discharge which is too well known to be 
described here, but it is a discharge which is common to most 
of the females who are in this habit of self abuse and the 
women who are tea drinkers. This lengthening of the liga- 
ments of the womb brings on a pain in the back, and as a 
consequence of this weakness of the back there has to be 
something to support the back, and this something is called 
the corset, and so the thing can be kept up until the girl is 
practically ruined in her body. 

We are not going to be led into the habit of computing 
how many of the female sex are m the habit of committing 
this folly. The book already referred to says (and the writer 
is one of the so-called ' ' distinguished physicians" ) that 
when he ' ' went to a boarding school there was not one boy 
who was not guilty of the habit of self abuse!" This is 
found in that book which is from the pen of a man who 
says he has not the courage to own his name in connection 
with the publication of the book. We will not go so far as 
that. We will sa}' there are multitudes of boys who do not 
know any better, and the girls are every whit as bad as the 
boys. There is no use of disguising this matter and assert- 
ing the girls are all pure as the angelic host. We know 
better. The girls are so guilty of this habit that there are 
thousands of doctors who are daily fattening on the cre- 
dulity of these same girls, and more of them will not say 
what is the cause of so much female disease, but they will 
doctor it for monej* and allow the girl to remain in ignor- 
ance of her malady week after week and this will be the out- 
come. After the lather gets tired of this paying out of 
any mone} T , there will come a settlement, and then, as the 



Unlawful Pleasures. 149 

case is about to slip oat of his hands, the doctor may hint 
darkly at what he long ago knew was the cause of the 
"female disease " and then only in such a manner that 
there is no satisfaction to the father. 

It may be thought that the writer is too severe. We do 
not think so. There is hardly a day passes which does not 
bring the fruits of this foil}' to the office of this writer. 

It is not one year since there came a married man of fifty 
who acknowledged that his wife (over fort}' years of age) had 
been in the habit of self abuse for as long as he had known 
her, and he did not know how to stop the habit. 

This may seem a strange story, but there are, in every 
doctor's experience, dozens of similar cases which come 
from the early habit of self abuse, and there does not seem 
to be any remedy. 

Who are the guilty parties ? We answer, all the tea 
drinkers. Leave no tea drinker out from the habit of self 
abuse. All the coffee drinkers. Let no coffee drinker as- 
sert she is pure. There is just as much sense for a woman 
in one of the houses of prostitution to say that she is 
strictly virtuous, as for one of these habitual tea or coffee 
drinkers to assert they are pure. 

Put them all in and assert that eveiy coffee drinker is in 
the habit of self abuse, and we shall not be far wrong. A 
coffee drinker can not keep the bod}' right and so we are as- 
sured, not alone by one person, but by any number of persons 
who have tried it, and know from experience, that there can 
not be a strictly virtuous life, without these sexual passionate 
thoughts, and at the same time drink these stimulants to the 
blood. And then this habit follows when the marriage tie is 
celebrated, because the parties have told the writer: "Doc- 
tor, I have found more pleasure from my own companion- 
ship, than from the company of my wife. " Why ? Be- 
cause they have both been victims to this self abuse. 

The womb descends. And it stays descended as soon as 
these pleasures which are unlawfully gratified, are become so 
exhausting as to take out more of this mucous than the 
womb can secrete. Then the womb falls and stays descended. 



150 Unlawful Pleasures. 

and the whites are present, and the back aches and all the train 
of evils follow which only a woman can recall. We ma}' stop 
and make a few remarks on this folly and its consequences 
on the victim. 

The first thing which happens to the girl who allows this 
waste to go away from her is the sleepy feeling which is al- 
most impossible to overcome. Then follows the feeling of 
irritability and peevishness. Then she is nervous. Then 
after a little she is hysterical. And there is, in some of the 
highly organized persons, a danger of epilepsy. These 
spasms are called by ever}* name on the calendar, but the 
cause is unknown to all save the girl who is guilty of this 
suicidal act. She can keep a secret, and she keeps this one 
until she is almost ruined in bod}* and in mind. There is 
sometimes, not always, a kind of gumminess around the eye- 
lids. Styes. There are some dark-colored rings around and 
under the eyes. Wrinkles do not always come, but they are 
there to stay as soon as there is any serious trouble with the 
digestive apparatus, which always follows sooner or later. 

The victim of masturbation has a weak back. Not so 
uniformly as to be a certain sign, but this weak back in a 
young girl is one of the symptoms and should always be 
looked upon with suspicion. There is usually a sort of a 
dreamy expression to all of the girls who abuse themselves 
who are fleshy. But with the ones who are thin we have 
found a decided devilishness of spirit which is called sulki- 
ness. And this sulkiness is sometimes followed by the 
most violent forms of anger. There, is very little control of 
one's temper when one is in the habit of self abuse. 

As we have seen, the womb discharges a quantity of 
mucous at the times of passion. This discharge comes 
from the general system, and is of so valuable a quality that 
it is soon impossible for the body to replace it, and in a short 
time the body can not keep up its weight and the girl grows 
thin and scrawny. The eyes are large and seemingly brilliant. 
She has a voracious appetite, but there is no such thing as 
any fattening of the girl, and she appears constitutionally 
thin in flesh, even after she has quit this vile habit. The 



Unlawful Pleasures. 151 

passion, as we have already seen, is one which depends in a 
measure on the flow of blood to the parts of generation. 
This flow of blood, having been carried to these parts and 
there stagnated, after the passion is over is partially carried 
away and is in the general circulation. Some of this blood 
comes out in the face as dead blood, and when nature sends 
this to the surface, it is in the form of pimples on the face. 

We do not say but what there are other causes for man}' 
of these pimples on the face. There are many other causes. 
But the cause of the worst pimples which often appear on 
the faces of youth, and the cause of so much rough skin, is 
brought about primarily, by this dead blood which is sent to 
the organs of generation, and when the passion is over this 
blood is dead, and so this. dead blood goes back into the gen- 
eral circulation as dead blood and comes out in the face as 
pimples and blotches. 

The girl may not always have them. This is conceded. 
But she is liable to have them, and any one who is practic- 
ing this habit of self abuse will not and can not have as clear 
and fair a skin as the ones who thoroughly control their sex- 
ual feelings, and see that there is no waste to their bod}'. If 
the features do not become angular, as the}' often do in 
certain cases (and in these cases the features assume what is 
termed the features of the old maid, but which are more the 
features of the victim of self abuse. The long neck and 
the angular features are not so much the features of the 
maid as the features of the masturbator. The single lady 
who is perfectly pure in thought, never has any of the old 
maid features, never) there is something which is often taken 
for an absent air. This dreaminess is one of the most de- 
ceptive things in the world to judge b}\ The girl has lost 
part of her memoiy and in the endeavor to catch that which 
has become lost, she is trying to remember something, and 
this far away, dream y expression is thought to be an abstrac- 
tion of the mind. But in reality, it is the vacuity of the 
victim of self abuse. 

And this expression is not alone found in the faces of the 
single women. But it is found on the faces of wives who 



152 Unlawful Pleasures. 



carry themselves proudly in society. This expression seen 
once is readily remembered. It is the expression which 
comes from abused, ungratified passion. I would hesitate to 
say that all the Chinese nation are victims of this habit of 
self abuse. Yet there is in the Chinese eye and expression 
an expression of sensuous passion which is expressive of 
the height of passion. Witness the contracted eye and the 
weakness of the lid. A constant or spasmodic effort at 
winking. A sudden drooping of the e} T elid which is indica- 
tive of some weakness in the nervous system. A national 
weakness, if you choose. If this expression is looked for in 
the married and is found, there is a great likelihood that there 
has been the habit of self abuse in the marriage bed, or that 
there has been the preventive from having children, which 
is brought about by the use of a rubber shield, and which is 
as bad, or worse than the habit of self abuse. How many, 
many families are known to the writer where these habits of 
preventing children have prevailed, and now in their old 
age they would almost die if they could have a child. So 
many of these sad cases could be related if we had the 
space and the time. 

It may be placed as a fact, that a girl who is in the habit 
of self abuse can not look at an object steadily. We are 
not alluding to those who are hereditarily near-sighted be- 
cause the father used tobacco. There are, unfortunately, 
cases in which the child may be the innocent victim of the 
father's passions or the father's habits of food and of drink. 
We may say this. The father who chews tobacco is liable 
to have near-sighted children. These children are not to be 
blamed. The parent will one day answer for this crime of 
bringing children into this world subject to these deficiencies 
of body. God will call the tobacco user to account as to 
the deprivation of eyesight to gratify his own tastes and his 
appetites. With that misfortune we have nothing to do at 
this time. But there is a shrinking of the eyes in the big- 
ness, a sort of contraction of the eyelids, which is the direct 
effect of the habit of masturbation in the girl, and is often 
seen in those who live solitaiy lives. 



Unlawful Pleasures. 153 

On the other hand there is an open eye, with a large space 
of white under the eye proper, and is as if the lower lid had 
dropped and left the eyeball too much exposed to the light. 
This is usually associated with a palpitation of the heart, and 
is only seen after the victim has been some time at this habit. 
The remed} 7 for this condition is to lead a strictly continent 
life and pa} 7 a strict attention to the diet ; then it can be 
done. Melancholy has long been known as one of the re- 
sults of self abuse. To be melancholy is to be at once sus- 
pected of this habit. Not that this suspicion is always 
founded on fact, but the habit of sorrowfulness is brought 
about by this habit of self abuse, and as this is known, there 
is an idea that all melancholy is from this habit. 

The chief result of the habit of self abuse among the 
girls is seen in a weakness of the bod}', which is not accounted 
for in any other way, but by knowing that all the secretions 
are wasted when this habit is gratified without the compensa- 
tion of the opposite sex. The weakness of the body is only 
accounted for by this habit. The girl should have as good a 
body and as good a mind as the boy, and if this is not the 
case there is something wrong in the make-up of the girl. 

The facts are that there should be as good and a better 
constitution in the girl than in the boy ; and this is indisput- 
able. The matter of sex does not make weakness, and this 
should be understood. It is not the sex or the conditions 
of sex which makes the girl weaker than the boy. It is the 
habits which surround the sex, and these habits tend to 
weaken the body as well as the mind. The girl can not 
stand or endure this exhaustive strain oe *ne body any 
more than the male sex, and when this exhaustive habit is 
formed there will be a weakness which can not be otherwise 
explained except by this daily and nightly loss of nervous 
force. 

Who are the guilty parties ? 

Go on the street and look about you to see who are the 
victims and the sufferers. 

You will see them by the thousands. They who are in 
the shops. They who work at some trade. They who are 



154 Unlawful Pleasures. 

doing nothing and allowing some one else to support them 
in idleness, which is } r et further the feeder of these sexual 
passions. 

Look at the brown faces and the unnaturalh r white faces 
and see the marks of the secret passion and its half-grati- 
fication. 

See the eyes of these victims, and watch the form, how it 
is stuffed with cotton or bird seed to show a form where 
nature has denied a shape. We call your attention to the 
eyes which are so sore and so weak that the}' are pitiable. 
These are the results of self-abuse or of some filth of body 
which is almost unpardonable. 

Oh, we would be glad to think of ever}' woman as an an- 
gel and to think she is pure and sinless. But we know bet- 
ter, and to help the ones who know their weakness, and are 
desirous of overcoming themselves and their passions, we 
will take another chapter which will show how to get rid of 
these passions and yet to have them for the greater building 
up of the body 

Can this sexual passion be wholly controlled ? We assure 
the reader that all of these sexual passions are readily con- 
trolled and can be held in abeyance. More than this, we 
can tell the victim of these wretched habits that if they 
will take courage and resolve there shall be no more of this 
yielding to these feelings, we will do our best to show them 
how to use these desires so as to produce the best results for 
the body. 

We think the persons who have these desires are the ones 
who are the depositaries of the good Lord, who desires them 
to become more than a mere human being. We think the 
ones who have seen and felt these desires are those who are 
powerful in themselves as soon as the}' conquer this waste 
and these losses. 

Their very experiences with these passions are such as will 
give them power as soon as they are free from all of these 
unquenchable passionate desires. 

What shall be done ? 

The first thing is to go to G-od and get his help. Then 



Unlawful Pleasures. 155 

we will examine this series of laws and see if there are no nat- 
ural laws which are ready to be obeyed every day, so that we 
are above all passion and above all desire for anything which 
is not lawful and not expedient. And to help us to under- 
stand this fully, we will take up the subject in another chap- 
ter. 

If we understand this matter we shall never have any un- 
lawful pleasures to call us master or to cause us to be 
branded on the forehead or in the eyes as the servants of 
some bestial habit. 



CHAPTER XV. 

PERFECT CONTINENCE. 

Although we have previously gone over this subject, we 
take it up again in a different manner to show exactly what 
is meant by perfect continence. First, there is to be no 
thought of passion. The will has to be the first to have the 
entire control of the mind, and if one does not have thorough 
control of the will the sooner one gets this control the better 
for her. Better for the body. Better for the mind. 
The method of obtaining control is to be sure one is not to 
have a thought of anything which will lead to the thought of 
passion. Xo lewd books. Not a picture which will bring up 
anything not in the best manner calculated to bring any other 
thoughts to the brain than those of purity. The food is the 
next and is really the most important, as there is no such 
thing as perfect virtue and at the same time a diet of 
coffee, eggs, wines, pork or potatoes. Bear this in mind, as 
if there are these foods eaten there is sure to be passion in 
the body, and in many of these cases this passion is stronger 
than the will, and when this is the fact there will come a 
time when the body will be under the control of this passion, 
and a mis-step will happen that will cause so much sorrow 
that all the world will never be worth living, in again. 

See to this food and learn a lesson from Daniel, who fed 
on pulse rather than to be a servant to the king and lose his 
virtue. For Daniel knew that if he ate of the king's meats 
he could not retain his virtue. This is the meaning of 
that food question. Bead about it. Bead this over care- 
fully as it is of the greatest importance in } T our life to know 
that there is a sure waj^ to live virtuousl}*, and if }'Ou do not 
know of this virtuous wa} T , the food will have such an effect 
on 3'our bod}' that you can not be virtuous in an}' manner, 
even though you try. The food, we tell you, has this effect 

156 



Perfect Continence. 157 

of arousing the passions and if you do not know of this, it is 
time you do. 

Eggs are certain provocatives of the passions, and we do 
not hesitate to say that any one who eats eggs in any shape 
will have passions which no person can gratify while they 
are single. 

The companionship of persons whose thoughts are bad or 
lewd is another source of weakness, and you will do well to get 
away from all of those persons who have -this habit of re- 
peating over any of the smutty stories and those double-mean- 
ing puns which are bordering on the order of lust. Shun 
such associates. 

We say to you that you will have none of these things 
about you if you surely desire to have the most perfect con- 
tinence. Avoid every thought which will lead to any pas- 
sion, or any gesture which will recall anything in the shape 
of passion in any manner. 

Fasting, as we have already said, is another of the best 
things in this world to overcome all the semblance of pas- 
sion. 

The cold bath is the best master of all passion, for if the bath 
is used there can not be a particle of passion where the body is 
in cold water. Soak your body and do not be afraid of any- 
thing in the shape of water as long as the menses are not on. 

At that time, if the thoughts of passion bother you, go 
without food and walk as far and as fast as you know how. 
Exhaust the body by exercise of some sort, even if you 
have to saw on some one's wood pile. Shun the first thought 
of anything which may lead to passion. Avoid anything 
like heating or spiced food, and if there are thoughts come 
up that have no business in your head, fight them down at 
their first appearance just as you would fight down a mad cat 
from your person. Do anything rather than have a pas- 
sionate thought for one minute. It is the first time that will 
tell 3 t ou the story, and if you can go without having any pas- 
sion for one day you can go without all passion for the re- 
mainder of your life. You can do it. 

The entire secret of perfect continence is in having the 



158 Perfect Continence. 

mind so under control that there will be no appearance of 
passion in the brain while the life is in the brain. Do not 
allow the mind to dwell on the person of any man or on his 
face any more than you would keep your hand in the fire. 
Do not allow any one to impress you with magnetism any 
more than you would allow one to impress your mind with 
some red-hot iron. Keep all of such thoughts out of your 
head and out of the brain. Keep your own hands from 
touching your person, anywhere. Keep your counsel 
and if there are such thoughts about any one come into your 
head, drive them out as j^ou would drive a rat out from the 
meal tub. Keep the mind pure, and this is the whole secret 
of perfect continence. If you have the mind pure there will 
be no danger of being in any wise lewd or loose in your own 
thoughts. Purify your brain. 

Much of this power dwells in your own self, and many per- 
sons think it all dwells in your own mind whether you will 
be virtuous or not. The Bible speaks in this manner and 
we think it is really true far more than the leading minds of 
the churches give credit for. The act of overcoming (which 
means all the passions, lusts and desires of the world) is 
spoken of as something to be done by each individual person, 
and if there is help to overcome, it is sent from the Lord to 
those who ask for that help. 

We tell you this is a great point. That, in all these fights 
between lust and passion on the one side and the actual de- 
sire for a life of perfect continence on the other, the struggle 
will be of short duration if you will heed the natural laws 
which cause all these passionate feelings, and avoid them. 
Make it your business to see that your body must be pure 
and fight down anything in the mind which borders on the 
very outer verge of impurity. "With the body and mind 
pure you can rest assured it will not be long before you will 
have a life of perfect continence. The angels will then 
camp about you to assist you. But, if we understand this 
matter in anyway, you must be an "overcomer" to com- 
mence with. Your will must commence the inner life. Is 
your will ready and desirous of a life of perfect continence? 



CHAPTER XVI. 
FOUR WORDS. 

In this chapter we shall point out some of the mistakes 
which men and women make in their start in life. 

Some of these ideas will not be new to you, perhaps, and 
some will be placed before you in a different light from what 
you have seen, but they are all intended to do you good and 
not for the benefit of the writer. 

These four words are Reputation, Character, Habits and 
the word Mentalit}-. 

These words are often used one for another, and if you 
can see the difference in these words and their meaning you 
will have a little education all to yourself. 

Reputation sometimes depends upon your associates and 
is such as they choose to give you, or say of 3-011, from what 
they know of you and from what they choose to tell of you. 

When one has lived in an old village or in a town which 
is not changing fast, one gets a reputation which'sticks to 
her in spite of all the changes of life, and though this 
reputation may be unjust and positively dishonest in its ap- 
plication, yet this is the " reputation,' 1 and there will be no 
means of changing this reputation while you live in that 
place. 

The reputation which you have is from man}" sources, and 
if you are careful of your reputation you can have a very 
good one and yet be a consummate hypocrite. 

This is true. 

And this care for one's reputation while one is a rogue is 
what gives the general public the doubtful aspect towards 
the members of all churches. 

Once there was a time when the fact of belonging to a 
church was enough to stamp one as having a good reputa- 
tion. 

159 



160 



Four Words. 



But now there is such a wide distrust of churches that one 
must do something else besides being a member of a church. 

"'Tis true, 'tis pit}' ; pit}' 'tis 'tis true." 

The reputation is what people say of you. 
. And while we would not have you careless of your reputa- 
tion, for the sake of friends, relations and your acquaint- 
ances, yet we know there is something which is beyond what 
people may say of you, and therefore we ask you to think 
over these four words, and see if you can not have the whole 
four good as well as correct all the time. 

But we assure you, however you ma}' think of the word 
reputation, there are three other meanings to the three other 
words, and far more valuable than the word reputation. 

The second word is character. 

Character is formed, some by the parents while you are 
yet small, and much more by your associates, and yet a far 
larger amount of this character is formed by the life you 
are leading. 

Your character may be good or bad. It may be gentle, 
loving, kind, and it may be the opposite of these. All of 
these are sometimes called attributes of one's character, and 
you have them or you have them not. 

We do not think this is correct. 

You have in you, if you read the English language, a de- 
sire to have all of the best things of life, and you certainly 
have the desire to be as pleasant as possible to all those 
whom you love and wish to cherish. 

Reputation is what people say of you, and the character is 
really inside of you. Your reputation may be bad and yet 
you may really have a fair character. 

We wish you to have a good reputation and we insist that 
your character is good. 

It is best for you to have the best character possible, and 
to that end we assure you that ever}' thought you may have 
is of some value in the forming of your character. 

Every associate is of some weight in moulding that charac- 
ter. Where you go is of some moment in this character 
formation. All the books you read and what you have and 



Four Words. 161 



what } 7 ou wear are of some account in this character forming. 
You should be gentle in character, and this is a phase of 
character that is often called "disposition." 

A gentle disposition is the opposite of rough, coarse and 
noisy. This gentleness of character is not wholly given by 
the parents, but is the result of certain conditions of the body 
and the mind which have resulted in forming the character as 
it is. 

It may be said that this character is formed b}< the habits 
which one has, but the habits are acts which are regularly- 
performed, and a habit is an act which is so often performed 
that we say there is a habit, because we see the act performed 
at regular intervals. 

Passing these acts or habits, we come to the word mental- 
ity, and we find that there is something in every person 
which can be educated to a certain point, and this part of 
the body, which can be educated in every one who is not an 
idiot, is called the mind. 

The part of the body which is under the control of the 
thinking part and resolute part of the body is in the brain, 
and is, when it is mentioned by itself, called the mind, or 
the mentality. 

Your mentality is exactly as }^our parents formed it before 
you were born, with the addition of the influences and the 
education which you and your environments have given to 
that mentality. 

In other words, you have a brain from the ancestors, 
which is capable of taking on or dropping some of the 
things which are desirable to your mind, and with these con- 
ditions you have a mentality completely your own. 

This mentality is, after you have arrived at the age of 
thinking, so completely under your own immediate control, 
and is so completely your work, that the judges and the 
courts hold you responsible for that mentality, to a certain de- 
gree. 

Thus, if you have educated that mentality to take of 
those things which are the property of another, and you have 
educated this mentality to conceal those things and to keep 
L 



162 Four Words. 



them, you are called a thief, and are (if found out) punished 
as a thief. 

If on the other hand, you have educated your mind to do 
good actions and to be kind to your race, you are called a 
philanthropist, or if the case appears to be too much of good 
for your own interest you are called a crank. 

This mentality goes yet deeper in the matter, if you will 
follow it. 

The thoughts you think are a part of 3-our mentality, and 
they are really a part of the brain and a part of the bod}' as 
much as the hand is a part of the body. 

In other words, there is some change in the atoms of the 
brain by which there is so total a change that the mind can 
be and is changed from one condition to another condition 
which may be entirely opposite to the first condition. 

This change is no doubt a change which affects the entire 
brain atoms so that what was a brain atom without anything 
on it becomes a brain atom covered all over with beautiful 
figures, thoughts, conceptions, memories and reveries. 

Or these brain atoms may be changed to the opposite of 
these conditions. 

During youth these atoms are readily changed and 
stamped, and we say youth is the period of education and of 
training. 

This is so universally recognized that there are states 
where it is the law that one shall attend a,school while young. 

When the mind is so that it can not be changed, we call 
the person an idiot or a fool. Youth is the time to educate 
these atoms of the brain, and as the}* are educated, so the}* 
are quite sure to remain. 

But not always is youth the period of forming mentality. 
Adult age changes the mind as well as youth, if circum- 
stances are favorable. We change our opinions as we be- 
come better versed or experienced in the ways of life. 

In youth we form our ideas, but these are changed or mod- 
ified as we grow older. We stamp the brain atoms far more 
easily in youth than when we are adults. Youth is the season 
for rapid education, for moulding the mind. 



Four Words. 163 



But this is only true of certain states of mind, and there 
are some things that can not be imprinted on the mind to 
staj x there until the brain is older and (presumably) harder. 
When these atoms of the brain are once hardened there is 
not much chance or likelihood of change in them. 

And this condition of the atoms of the brain, as we find it, 
is called the mentalitj', and is, realty, yourself. 

Upon this mentality there is to be built up a new person, 
and a person which may be entirely different from anything 
which was in the brain before there commenced to be any 
change in the atoms. 

Let us make this clear to you, for we think this is one of 
the most important of all the things in the world, and one 
on which your whole life, happiness and welfare depend. 

We desire to make this so plain to you that it will do you 
some good, and such good as will last you as long as you live. 

You have these atoms of the brain from the blood, and 
they are, while you are j^oung, fresh and ready to receive 
any and all impressions. 

Suppose } r ou take one of these atoms this morning and 
stamp that atom with the memory of some beautiful scenery 
or some kind remembrance of some of your friends. 

The atom is impressed and in the brain there is a place 
where this scenery or kind remembrance is stowed away so 
that wherever you may go that scenery and that kind remem- 
brance will go with you. 

Take another example. 

You know how the domestic animals look. 

Imagine yourself transported to some place where there 
were no domestic animals, and you would carry all the recol- 
lections of those domestic animals so that, under almost any 
circumstances, you would have a faculty of reproducing 
these animals on paper, wood, or in clay, or in any other sub- 
stance which you could fashion by the hands. 

This likeness of the animal would be in }T>ur head, and it 
would be man}' years before there would be any change in 
the atom to fade out the conditions of the appearance of the 
forms and colors of these domestic animals. 



164 Four Words. 



The appearance of these animals is said to be in }^our 
head. In reality the} T are on some atom of the brain and 
will remain on some atom as long as you live. 

Your mentality possesses these animals. Their shape, 
color, size and habits are all impressed on your brain atoms, 
and it is a fair thing to suppose (although there is no posi- 
tive proof, as the brain atoms have never been shown to have 
an} T or even the slightest trace of an}i,hing to show any 
change, so far as can be detected by the anatomists) that the 
brain atoms are really stamped with the things seen, smelled, 
felt, heard and tasted. 

The five senses are then the agents which are capable of 
educating or changing your entire mentality in an}' way that 
you may so desire. 

If this idea is in your head, then you can see that there is 
something in y ou besides the reputation, the character and the 
habits. You can see that there is room for the greatest 
change one can imagine in all the circumstances of your 
life. 

Let us suppose this morning that you are entirely deA r oid 
of any musical talent. You have a desire to learn this 
branch of education and take up the study, either by your- 
self, or with the aid of a teacher. 

The first day you learn the appearance of the notes, and 
the second day you are engaged on the divisions of the time 
and the different spaces of time between the notes, and the 
third day there is something else, and so on for a year. 

When the year is up there is something in the brain which 
you can not forget if you try, because you have impressed 
the atoms of the brain with these ideas of the year's study, 
and the year's impressions will not be taken from you, no 
matter where you go. 

In the same manner about arithmetic. You think of 
some mark which represents something, and the mind or the 
atoms of the brain are at once at work to cany out the 
effects of that symbol almost before you can think. 

For instance, you know that the sj-mbol x signifies multi- 
plication. If you see 8x8 your mind flies to 64 as the solu- 



Four Words. 165 



tion of the figures. This is your mentality at work almost 
before you know there is to be any work for it. 

But in the case of the untutored mind these symbols have 
no more effect than so much sand in a heap. 

If these ideas are in your head there is nothing which you 
can not gain and there is no position which is too high for you. 

We may say, also, that if there is not something of this 
knowledge of this mentality about you, there is great dan- 
ger that you will descend into the lowest scale of mental 
life, and be in still lower mentality than you may have at 
the present. 

You see, also, that this possession, which we call mentality, 
is of far greater importance than any reputation which one 
can possess. 

One may have a good reputation, a fair character, correct 
habits, and seem to be everything which is desirable on earth, 
and yet in the mentalitv be a fool and a villain. 

Thus you may be a Sunday-school teacher,- of spotless 
character, the most faultless habits as far as one can see, and 
yet in your mentality you may be so rotten that it only takes 
a breath to change your whole life to the uttermost degrada- 
tion. 

Can we make this plain to you ? 

You are a Sunday-school teacher, your life is all that is 
desired ; if, in your mind, you will think of anything which 
you would do if there were an opportunity, you are as bad 
as you would be if that opportunity had already presented 
and you had done the thing which is in the mind. 

Thus, if you think you would steal, if the opportunity 
presented, you are a thief in the mentality, and it will only 
require the opportunity to prove yourself to be a thief when 
opportunity has presented. 

It is this mentality which is so seducing to youthful minds, 
and it is this perverted mentality or sensuous mentality 
which has led so many girls into bawdy houses and into the 
gutter, from as good homes as you and I ever had. 

Their mentality was below their surroundings and in a mo- 
ment they fell to the level of their mentality. 



166 Four "Words. 



The girl who reads the novel and and wishes she were in 
the hero's arms, and would be in the hero's arms if the op- 
portunity would present, would yield herself to the first hero 
who came along and the mentality would or could make a 
mistake about the condition of the hero and there would be 
another victim to what is called "seduction" but what is 
realty a case of lowered mentality, from some cause which 
might not have previously been known. 

In cases which are judged by the actual facts, it is seen 
that there is no such thing as sudden villainy or sudden 
species of crime. 

No more is there what is called a "betrayal " of any girl. 
The girl herself has previously lowered her standard of vir- 
tue, and when opportunity presents, she yields as she did in 
day dreams. 

This must be a fact. 

The girl who, in her mentality, has previously decided 
that under an}' circumstances she would not allow any one to 
possess her bod}' is the one, who, when circumstances come 
is not going to yield to any persuasions or any passion, 
The mentality can not yield to any sudden gust of passion, 
because when mentality sees the passion there is some obsta- 
cle in the mind as there was previously and is in the mental- 
ity, and the body follows the mentality and denies all en- 
croachments. 

It is all right for those who believe in the inherent weak- 
ness of the female sex to make excuses for the woman's fall. 

We do not think it is true. It is usually the man who 
has fallen first, and, having fallen, then he persuades and 
tempts, coaxes and bullies the woman into yielding up the 
possession of her body for the gratification of his passion. 

The point which we would make is this : If any one has a 
habit of thought which is not as it should be, there will 
come a time when this thought will master the body, and 
then and there, the girl will drop from the place where she is 
in reality to some place a great deal lower than she would 
be if she did not give way to any such lowered thoughts, 
which come of a lowered mentality. In other words, the 



Four Words. 1C 



thoughts of the sin or crime, or the lapse from strict virtue, 
comes previous to the fall. No woman is seduced. She 
surrenders herself. She is at fault in her mental ity. 

If one desires to have perfect control of the body, there 
should be a resolve not to allow any of the dreams or the 
reveries which are so often given wa} T to, at the time one 
should be up and out of doors walking or at work. 

These day dreams and these reveries of what might be — no 
matter on what subject these thoughts may be if they are of 
passion — are to be resolutely banished from the mind. 
Fight them down as you would fight down an enemy, and 
have the mind so that there is no possible chance to get to 
dreaming of things which should, under no consideration, 
take place. 

We assure you there is so much in this advice that we as- 
sert that we can not conceive of any young lady ever step- 
ping from the path of virtue and happinesss, unless she has 
given herself up to some dream of passion before the act 
comes to pass. We say to you, keep the thoughts of an}-- 
thing which is false or anything which is wrong out of the 
mind completely. Keep the mental it}' as pure and as sweet 
as if it was the only thing in the world of any value to you. 
Keep ever3 7 thing which is wrong or unlawful or out of place, 
as far from } T our mind as the east is from the west. 

Do not allow for one moment anything in your mind 
which should not be paraded on the street. Allow no 
thought in }^our mind, nor any reverie, which you would not 
have the mother see. Or, if you can realize it, do not have 
any thought in the head which would not appear to be correct 
and lovely if the angels were in the room with you each day. 
And if this is your endeavor, } t ou may be sure there is to be 
success for you in an}^ of } T our walks in life. Naj', more. 
We can assert there is no step in the world to which you 
may not aspire. 

There is nothing which you could imagine but what will be 
yours in realit}' and in a far greater degree than if you could 
reverie and dream of it all your life. The realit}' of love is 
far sweeter than any dream of it can be. 



168 Four Words. 



The owning of a treasure is far more to be desired than 
the mere dream of owning it. We say have the reality and 
do not dream of having it. 

It is all right to dream and to study of those things which 
are elevating to the mind, and to aspire to something better 
than anything which you may have in the world. 

It is all right to hold to an idea of doing some good and 
to do something for your own self and your f amhy, and to 
think out the proper way to do these good things. These 
thoughts and reveries do not injure the brain. They do not 
destroy the mentality. It is the dream of passion and the 
sensuous reverie which we deprecate and which we urge you 
to avoid. 

Fight down such ideas as soon as they get into the head. 
Banish them with hard work and resolute activity. If in 
the night these reveries approach you, get up and go to work. 
Or, if there is no other way, go and walk. Or take the chairs 
and have a silent exercise until all of these thoughts are 
banished from the brain. As we have already explained, 
these thoughts are sometimes the reflex action of the brain 
and the spinal cord, arising from the filling of the arteries of 
the sexual organism with blood, and while these arteries are 
filled, the brain commences to have these day dreams which 
are fires to burn away the intellect. Conquer this habit of 
sensuous reverie and have a clear mentality. 

Instead of having the thoughts go out towards these ma- 
terial things of earth which will perish, and if they did not 
perish the}' load you with unhappiness, weakness, and a dis- 
eased body, instead of these things of earth, place the eyes 
on the throne of Grocl, and have a better and a purer idea of 
life which will elevate you above the common herd of life 
and give you command of earth's treasures. 

The difference between a person who has nothing of this 
world's goods and one who has, is often the simple result 
of saving a few dimes or of taking care of that which one 
has. You are steward of God. Will you not be a good 
steward? 

If you desire to be a good steward, then all of these rev- 



Four Words. 169 



eries must be banished from the mind, and your mentality 
should be as clear as the crystal lake of life. 

Let the angels rejoice in your purity and your goodness. 

Allow no thought of anything which is of the earth to 
shadow your mind. Allow no thought of anything which 
is of the body of man or woman to force any entrance into 
your mind to hamper you for one moment or to force you to 
have a desire for anything which is against law or justice. 
Keep the mentality perfectly pure, and Grod shall have his 
angels come down and camp about you. This is the doc- 
trine of the Father, and is found in the opening chapters of 
Job. Your part is to keep the mentality perfect. 

There is another point which is of importance in this men- 
tality thought, and this is the fact that there is no such thing 
as there being any exalted thought, and very little sudden 
action of nobleness, fortitude, courage or bravery or any- 
thing else occurs in the brain which is not there beforehand. 

We mean to say that there is very little chance to have 
any exalted mind which is not brought out before the time 
comes to have that mind tried. In other words, the idea of 
the act is always before the act itself. 

Is this clear to you? 

The house is in the architect's mind, and he plans it out 
before the cellar is dug. The fountain plays in the artist's 
eye before the aqueduct is laid to bring the water from the 
lake in the mountains. It is in the mentality. 

Look at any bridge or any structure in the world. Do 
you think the architect, the one who planned the bridge or 
the structure, did not know in his mind just how that struct- 
ure would look, before a pier or a corner stone was laid? 

Most assurecll}' that structure was thought out in all of its 
details before anything was in material form. 

So, too, any act of the body is always thought (although 
it may be sometimes in a very vague sort of a manner) in 
the mind before the body does the act. The}' have supposed 
such and such a case and decided how they would act if the 
case went a certain wa} T . 

These four words comprise yourself and the care of mind 



170 Four Words. 



and body. There is more thought than could be compressed 
into a book of this size. Let this be your seed, and foster it 
until you shall not alone rise higher yourself, but bring oth- 
ers to comprehend the value of four words. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

BEAUTY, STRENGTH, KNOWLEDGE AND 
POWER. 

There are some things which every young lady needs to 
have, and among these needed things we class beauty, 
strength, knowledge and power. We will take up beauty, 
for that is the least understood and is the most desired. 

Persons commonly suppose that beauty consists in a fair 
skin, a perfect form and regular features. If this were so, 
there would be many more beautiful ladies than there are at 
this time. A fair skin is to be desired, and we have already 
shown you how to have that. The perfect form is due in 
some measure to the constitutions of the father and the 
mother and the care of the child during infancy. But you can 
remedy many defects of form by exercise. So also are the 
regular features when there has been no accident to mar the 
features. But these three together and any quantity of 
money and artistic dressing thrown in will never make a 
beauty; while a person may lack all these requirements 
and yet become a perfect beauty in the eyes of her acquaint- 
ances. 

How? We will tell you. The saying that "handsome is 
that handsome does " is not a myth. It is a living fact and 
one that is seen every day and is as little understood by the 
persons who see it as if it was written in some foreign lan- 
guage instead of the character of the person who carries the 
marks of beauty around. 

Beauty consists in being good and kind to those with 
whom you come in contact. It consists in having a desire 
to please the people you are with. It consists in having a 
desire to do good and in doing good. The very fact that 
you have done some good to some one is one of the things 
which will make your face beautiful, even if you have a 
rough skin, irregular features and the worst form in the 

171 



172 Beauty, Strength. Knowledge and Power. 

world. There is something in this that can not be made to be 
plainly understood, and we shall fail to be understood in this 
beauty-forming if we do not make this idea plain. 

We will try to be plain with the subject, although we 
know there will be man}- who will not understand this at 
once, because it will be new to them. 

1. You do a good action and this action makes you feel 
happy. This happiness is reflected from the brain to the 
face, and this good action is shown in } T our face and you 
have a mark of beauty. 

Eveiy good or kind act goes to mark your face with these 
acts of kindness, and the first thing that is known is that 
some one is remarking how different such a one looks from 
what they did some time since. 

This truly forms beauty. 

On the contrary, if you have all of the requisites for 
beauty and you are sulky or peevish, every time you sulk 
and every time you act as if the evil spirit has possession of 
you, every time you get angry and have one of the fits of 
passion which are so common among the children who are 
spoiled, there will be some mark in 3 T our face which will tell 
on you that these fits of passion, anger, sulkiness or peevish- 
ness have been there, and you are marked as an ugly person. 

We say this: Every time you think, or every time you do 
any act, that act is impressed on your, brain and face, and 
you can be as easily read as if all those acts were written in 
a book, and when you turn }X)ur face towards your acquaint- 
ances, that book (your face) is read by some one who has had 
some experience in reading faces. Do .you now see what is 
meant by the saying, u Handsome is that handsome does "? 

Perhaps one of the habits which has hurt so many girls of 
this age is the habit of reading the smutty and indecent 
stories which are published so cheaply, and are so common 
everywhere. 

The dwelling of the mind on these indelicate subjects be- 
fore the body is to be gratified in a proper manner, is one of 
the facts which are impressed on many of the faces which 
are daily seen in the streets. We advise you, therefore, if 



Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 173 



3'ou are desirous of having beauty, to keep from all these 
books which are so alluring to the j-oung. We advise you 
not to get angry or passionate, or to have any of the fits of 
sulkiness that so man}' young ladies cultivate. 

These fits hurt you. They show on your face and the} r 
spoil your countenance, no matter how fair your skin is or 
how regular your features may be. 

The very ideas which are in your head and the thoughts 
you think have an impress "on your brain. And they have 
an impress far more visible on your face. Yes, every 
thought is imprinted on the face. Did you ever see a police- 
man leading away some individual, and see how eagerly the 
crowd will stop and gather around the victim to see how he 
or she looks? Such curiosity is natural and is as common 
as the day. These curious people will make remarks on the 
condition of the criminal's face and then, after they have 
passed their opinion on the face, the} T will next and last look 
at the person's dress and the condition of the person. 

This is one of the natural things one is constantly seeing. 
We are curious to know how the supposed criminals look. 
And when we have seen them, we judge instinctively, 
whether they are good or bad. So with us and with every 
one who has an interest in humanity. People j udge us by 
our faces, and it will be well for us if we carry the marks of 
kindliness and goodness, of honesty and generosity, on our 
faces. We shall be beautiful, although we may be old, ugly 
and decrepit. We may be deformed and disfigured and yet 
we can be beautiful to all those around us. 

Our daily habits will make us beautiful or these habits 
may make us ugly. 

You ma}^ think you will do this one bad act and then you 
will stop and become good for a fact. But we do not think 
you can do this. The one bad act or the one bad thought is 
the one which is going to stick in your head and is going to 
mark all the brain with one impression of the act as it was. 
The brain is marked witli the memory of that vile act and 
the impression is carried to the face every time you think of 
it. This is not a world where we can select a time and do 



174 Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 

some heroic act and go down to history as a hero or as a 
celebrated person, and we would not do this if we could, if 
we think of it in a correct light. 

We have the desire to be happy now and hereafter; to be 
happy and to be beautiful is of more moment now than it 
will be a hundred years from now. Thinking of these facts 
you will desire to do good and to be good just now. Allow 
us to tell you something. If you so desire, the moment to do 
these good acts is just now. There will be an opportunuy 
to do good and there never will be a moment more precious 
than right now. The Grod who rules this world will find you 
good acts to do, and if you do these good acts you will have 
the marks of beauty which will stay by you. 

Yes, stay by you. Stay on your face and stay in your 
brain. When one does a mean act, that act is not gone as 
soon as the act is over. Not at all. The remembrance of 
the act is left and the act is done over and over again until 
the act is filling the brain. Consider of this repetition in mem- 
ory. Thus you can see that any act, good or bad will be mul- 
tiplied many and many a time b} T the memory, and so it will 
do you hurt or good as the act may be good or bad as long 
as the memory will recall the act. 

Did you ever see a fat parson or a sleek priest and not 
think how their thoughts have run? You think of chicken 
pie and good red wine. These creatures carry the marks of 
the beast on their faces. They can not shake that mark off 
no matter where they go. So with the miser and the stingy 
person, and so with the cruel person. All of their ideas 
show on their faces, and we judge them without asking any 
questions. Do you not suppose that some one is judging 
ypur face for all it is worth? 

Yes, indeed, my dear daughter, these thoughts are all im- 
pressed on your face, and there is no taking them off with 
any sort of paint and powder that we know anything about. 
They are there to stay. We desire you to appear beautiful. 
And we desire that beauty to be in your bod}'. The saying 
that ' ' beauty is onty skin deep and ugliness goes to the 
bone," is not correct. Both and all of our attributes go to 



Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 175 

the bone and are passing through our circulation every minute. 
The very resolve which you make this minute is registered 
on your face, let it be good or bad. And as you think so 
you will be. 

Every act of cleanliness or of filth is on your face. 
Every act of selfishness is registered on that countenance of 
yours. You may think you can conceal these private acts 
from the world, but it is impossible. Some one will read 
you and some one will tell on you. Get yourself right and 
keep yourself right by having the good Lord to keep your 
mind right in the truth and in the things which are the 
foundations of eternal life. Be good and beauty shall come 
to you. 

Strength. 

There has been much of an idea in the past that it is not 
lady-like or fashionable to be strong or muscular. 

This idea comes from across the water where the main 
idea of a women is something to sleep with and something to 
gratify the passions of a man. 

Not that it is always necessary for these male brutes to 
have a woman. For these fiends in human form do not 
keep women always to gratify their lusts. They would take 
a boy and perhaps they would take out his testicles and then 
they would use this boy by having his person used as one 
would use a prostitute. 

The Turks do this, and the Portuguese and Spaniards do 
this, to this day. They have boys who are castrated, and let 
them out at so much a head, as the shameful woman lets out 
her body. These men, who are beasts, use the rectum of the 
boy as they would use the vagina of a woman. And these 
people do not think it womanly for a woman to have any 
strength. What is your idea of the value of such a person's 
judgment? 

You will say of no value. And we think so. These 
opinions which are based on lust and crime should not pre- 
vail in this country. So we say the more strength any one 
has, the better off they are. The next persons who do not 
think a woman has any right to any strength are the Chinese, 



176 Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 

and the}' have the faculty of binding the woman's feet in 
such a shape as will prevent her from ever moving about or 
seeing any one besides themselves. The Chinese do not think 
it womanly or lady-like to have any strength. What do you 
think of their judgment in this matter? 

We believe you. should be as strong and as able to bear 
the burdens of life as a man. 

You will have enemies enough who will, if they get a 
chance, take away any surplus strength. 

You will find that all the doctors who will be called in 
when you are sick will be sure to give you. some poison to 
reduce your strength and to keep you always in the habit of 
taking some dope in the fool hope that some day }-ou will 
strike something which will give you back your lost strength. 
You may as well discard that foolish hope now as any time. 

No kind of medicine is able to give you an atom of 
strength. 

All strength is from the food which } t ou may eat and from 
the way the vital force is treated. 

You can get strength all right. We will tell you how to 
get this strength. We think we know. But we desire you 
to discard this idea that there is any strength in any medical 
formula or any of the so-called tonics. What is this strength? 

When a person has good muscles and good nerves there is 
some strength. To have this good- muscular development 
we must exercise and we must have good food and pure 
drink, as well as to breathe pure air. 

In the shortest time, we tell you. to have strength you must 
eat right, drink right, and }^ou must exercise so as to have 
this strength in the proper places. Lots of people have 
much strength in their stomachs and then use it in such a 
manner that they soon wear the stomach out. You do not 
want to do this. You want the strength in the proper place, 
and under such control as will give you a power to act when 
the time comes. 

The most familiar example is the arm of any blacksmith. 
When he goes into the shop at first, there is not any more 
strength in his arm than there is in any one else's arm. But 



Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 177 

by exercising that particular set of muscles there comes to 
be in his arm a most tremendous power, and a strength which 
is in no other class of men in the world, unless we except 
the brute who is a prize fighter. In your case, you want 
strength in your feet, in your arms, in your whole body, and 
especially in the arms, for any manual labor which may fall 
to your lot to do. 

"Walking will give you all needed strength in your lower 
extremities, and swinging the dumb bells and the clubs, or 
taking up two chairs for five minutes a day, will give you as 
much as or more strength than most people have. 

You need more than ordinary people, and we advise you to 
take five minutes in the morning and lift up two chairs by 
their rounds, or take two large books from the floor and bend 
the body without bending the back. Pick these books from 
the floor and place them above the head and as far behind 
you as possible, and so down on the floor again. 

There are many of these exercises which you will soon 
find out for yourself, and these exercises and walking will 
give }'OU all the strength you need for anything in the world. 
But do not forget the daily walk, as that is the best mode of 
acquiring strength in the world, and one which is the most 
easy of access. 

Walking is always ready for you to do and is always in 
order day or night. 

With the idea that you are going to acquire strength, you 
will soon find that the amount of strength which you will 
possess will be wonderful. 

All the muscles will grow larger and more firm while the 
body all over will fill out firm and hard. 

You will see at once that any corset while you are trying 
to gain strength is out of place. You can not wear the cor- 
set and be well or strong, and the sooner you have this truth 
in your head the sooner you will have strength, 

In acquiring strength you have to keep in your mind that 

meats, pastry, eggs, oysters, coffee, tea and chocolate are not 

producers of strength. The best strength-formers in the 

world are grains and fruits. Do not forget this, and do not 

M 



178 Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Poaver. 

allow any one to change 3 T our mind from the facts that 
strength is from proper food, clear water and pure air. 

Knowledge. 

There are many kinds of knowledge which are of no use 
to the persons who have these differing kinds of knowledge. 
There is the knowledge of playing cards. This is u-seless 
and of no value whatever. It is not alone a waste of time 
and of space, but it is a knowledge which is rotting to the 
brain and excludes the other knowledge which would be of 
some account in the struggle of life. 

We see every day a knowledge of villain}' of one kind or 
another, which is not only useless, but is absolutely so 
tedious, and mind destructive, that the possessor's mind is 
sinking in the slough of the world's mud. 

"We mean this: The knowledge which is of no use in this 
world's battles is not only useless in the fights of the world 
to conquer what the world calls a living, but is more than 
useless, in as much as it cumbers up the brain and prevents 
the accumulation of such knowledge as would be of practical 
moment in the battle of life, and that kind of knowledge 
which will assist in this useful battle of earning the living is, 
in a great measure, crowded out from the brain of those who 
have cumbered their brains with this useless knowledge. 
Their brain is filled with rot. No room for sound knowledge. 

Some of these useless kinds of knowledge may be enumer- 
ated as follows: Card plajdng, dancing, handkerchief sym- 
bols, games of nearly every kind, the knowledge of smutty 
stories, and a knowledge of the mean ways, which are thought 
to be a sign of one's smartness or of an education of the 
day. 

We see the folly of this useless knowledge every day 
when we contemplate the people who have laid in a good 
supply of this brain-rotting knowledge. 

We see young ladies who have had a smattering of French, 
something of German, and can ipl&y on the piano some, and 
perhaps crochet a little, with a fine knowledge of playing 
cards, and a knowledge of all of the dances which should 
or should not be used on any occasion, and we see when 



Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 179 

these persons go into the world or are thrown on their own 
resources for the means of making an honest living, they are 
unprepared for the struggle, and they go into the houses of 
prostitution and are wrecked on the road of life. Their rot- 
ten brains could not take care of their bodies. 

It will not do to saj^ the gambler has no knowledge. He 
has. But his knowledge is not useful to himself or to any 
one else. One of these days he will find he has no useful 
knowledge and his brains will allow him to kill the useless 
body. He will be a suicide. 

To be short in this matter let us sa} T there are two kinds 
of knowledge, good and bad. 

Or, the two kinds of knowledge may be said to be useful 
or useless. To have the most useful knowledge we have 
only to reflect on what is best for ourselves or what is the 
best for the race. 

Certainly, that which does not bring in food, raiment, and 
does not make us any better, is not a good kind of knowledge 
or a useful knowledge. 

A trade is something which will last as long as we live, 
therefore the knowledge of a trade is a good thing to have, 
a useful knowledge. The knowledge of a game of cards will 
never bring in anything to ourselves or any one else, and it 
can not be a good kind of knowledge to have for our own 
self or for any one else. This is a useless kind of knowledge. 
The differing kinds of knowledge can be readily judged by 
these standards. 

To gain the best kinds of knowledge it is necessary to 
have the brain in the best of order. If we have the brain in 
good order we may be sure we can readily accumulate any 
kind of knowledge we desire. If the bod} r is in good order 
we ma} 7 be sure the brain will be as the body is, unless there 
is some trait of idiocy in the family, which affects the body. 

"A sound mind in a sound bod}'," is one of the oldest 
and most true of all sayings. 

To gain the accumulation of facts which is needed, to 
have what is called an education, we have two methods: 
instruction from books and instruction from teaching. 



180 Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 

The 3'ouiig lad}' is not often so fortunate as to be able to 
have all the teachers needed at the time one can learn, and 
therefore the next best means of acquiring knowledge is 
from books. 

The choice of books is of moment. Those which will give 
you the knowledge 3-011 desire to have, and that which is of 
use for 3'ou to know, are the best for 3-ou to have. 

Ordinarily we do not class the books which are called 
"novels "as of much value in this acquisition of useful 
knowledge. 

We think it is a fact that the novels waste time and do 
not place things in their true light, and so far are destructive 
to time and to the brain, in as much as the3 T do not teach the 
truth. This error is two-fold. It wastes the time and 
leaves the brain in a weakened condition. We advise 
against the reading of novels. 

If we believe the Bible we have two other reasons. The 
novel takes awa) T the time from finding out of the things of 
God, and it also places the reader in the categoiy of those 
"who love and make a lie. " All lies are novels or romances, 
and therefore we condemn the novel in an3 T form. 

There is an abundance of other things which are useful 
to the 3 T oung lad3 T , and the time will be improved so rapidly 
that the novel will be shunned as soon as there is an} T under- 
standing. 

Histor3 T ma3 T be ver}' diy, but it is useful, and it will not 
be so dry as soon as one is able to comprehend it. 

To this end let us advise 3-ou a little. 

Begin b3 r reading only a little at first. Try only- a page 
or a half page; or even a sentence until 30U have that in } r our 
head. Then read the next and remember that. When the 
day is gone sit down in some quiet place and place all the 
doings of the day on a book which ma}- be called an3 T thing 
you please, — a diar} T , or a memorandum, or a record. This 
will aid 3;ou in having one of the finest memories in the world. 

We know of nothing which will so soon give one the mem- 
ory which is so admired in the circles of scholarship and of 
intellectualit}-, as this habit of daity recording all the events 



Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 181 

of the day, correct!}' repeating and impressing the brain 
with the events of the preceding twenty-four hours. 

This is a habit we strongly advise to any young ladj^, — 
this keeping a dail}- record of all the events of the day and of 
recording them as accurately as may be possible on paper. 

We do not now speak from what some persons have told 
us of this habit. We tell you this from a personal knowl- 
edge which was commenced when the writer was no more 
than twelve, and has been continued to a late period of life. 

It has been the foundation for what has been termed ' ' a 
good memory, " a good head, and a perfect comprehension of 
things as they were. 

We do not say that the keeping of a dail} r record of one's 
doings will certainly give one the brains one would have had 
if the parents would have dail}^ educated the child as it 
grew up, educated the child b}- a judicious conversation. 
We think there is nothing in this world which would com- 
pensate for the loving and educating talk of the parents 
while the child is growing up from childhood to manhood or 
to womanhood. But if there is anything which will more 
than repay for all the defects of an earl} r education, it is 
in having the habit of remembering everything as it passed 
and as the day went'b} T , adding to the stock of knowledge in 
the head, fastening and nailing this knowledge into the 
brain atoms. This is one of the surest methods of placing 
that knowledge safely on the brain that we can advise. 

It is Bacon who says, "Reading makes a full man, speak- 
ing makes a ready man, writing makes an exact man." 
And by the method which we suggest, } t ou can have all 
of these desirable conditions in yourself. You can be full, 
read} T and exact. In short there is nothing but what can be 
learned by applying one's self to a steady pursuit of knowledge, 
and this knowledge can be so firmty placed in one's brain, 
that there will be no possibilit}- of its loss. 

The most useful kind of knowledge for a young lady is to 
hate those facts in her head whereby she can readily place 
herself in any position of earning her own way in life and 
be able to adapt herself to any surroundings. 



182 Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 

Such knowledge is invaluable, and without some of these 
kinds of knowledge there will never be an} T happiness, 
never any contented or peaceful mind. 

The knowledge of making good light bread; of making 
good and palatable soup, and cooking the various kinds of 
meats as well as of making gruels, toast, broths, and some of 
the simple infusions, are among the most useful kinds of 
knowledge. 

As soon as one can wait upon and help an invalid, there is al- 
ways an avenue open for profitable (in a sense) kind of employ- 
ment. We do not advise an} T kind of nursing as a profes- 
sion, because if one desires to learn nursing, we should ad- 
vise the study of medicine. Nursing, as commonly prac- 
ticed, destro} T s the bodily health, and is not a desirable avo- 
cation for any young lad}' to go into. The practice of med- 
icine is all right for the young lady who desires to do good. 

The many branches of a good education demand that any 
one who expects to make her way above the condition she 
is now in, should be possessed of a good and rapid hand of 
penmanship and should be a good speller. The lack of these 
two accomplishments will sometimes debar a young lady 
from being in the societ}- she would like to be, and is hers 
by right. And if she does not possess these two accomplish- 
ments, she will have some bitter moments when she will re- 
gret not having given sufficient time to these branches. 

As to the penmanship, we have no hesitation in saying 
that any one can be accomplished in these two branches b}' 
placing aside an hour each day, or, if there is no time in the 
day, an hour at night, or early in the morning, and placing 
the mind on the acquisition of these two branches, and be- 
come so proficient that there will never be any lack of the 
knowledge of spelling or the means of placing it on paper. 

Correct writing is not so important as it was once, but 
there is still room for the best pen-writers in the book-keep- 
er's departments, and when one can write plainly and quickh* 
there will be no lack of employment. 

Other branches will be spoken of under the head of earn- 
ing: one's living. While we think there is no knowledge 



Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 183 

which one can not acquire while working every da}*, we 
think there are some of the by-paths of knowledge which 
are well worth the trouble of going after, and we will men- 
tion a few of them. 

Knitting, sewing, darning, canning fruit, making jellies, 
cutting and fitting one's dresses, mending a shoe, if one 
lives in the country the knack of mending the harness, are 
all parts of a general knowledge which is of the utmost 
value in the daily life of this America. 

The art of growing a garden is one of the things that is 
little thought about by the city miss, but it is one of the arts 
whichis soon learned where there is a will and the oppor- 
tunity. The garden is of the greatest value in the country, 
and if the young ladies of the country knew their advantages 
they would never envy any person who lives in the city. 

The place where the berries grow is the place where there 
should be no consumption. The place where there is pure 
milk and good air is the place where there should be a long life 
and a sweet companionship with nature. The reason why the 
country home is dull is because of the lack of educational 
advantages of the country, ancl an inability to pierce through 
the glamour of a ready tongue and city accomplishments. 

Life is harder to earn in the city and health is harder to 
keep. Knowledge is as easy gained in the country as in the 
city, if one will commence aright. But, as there is a mag- 
netism about the city which can not be found in the country, 
there will always be some who find the city the most 
pleasant and most desirable to live in. Solid knowledge is 
not gained Try any ready stroke of chance but by continued 
application. Hard work is the price one must pay for any 
knowledge which is above the average. The parrot gains 
his little sayings in a few da}*s. The man who makes a pro- 
fession a life-long study, will not get through his studies un- 
til he is certain the tomb is waiting for him. But the 
knowledge of how to live happily and successful^- has al- 
ready come to the reader. Will you profit by this knowl- 
edge? 

Power. 



184 Beauty, Strength, Knowledge and Power. 

By the term "power" I mean the something that will cap- 
tivate the persons who are around us and make them our 
friends. It is indefinable. It is called animal magnetism, 
and is often mistaken for something which any one can ac- 
quire and is to be acquired b} T being polite and easy and 
graceful. 

Sometimes this power is called b} T the name of accom- 
plishments. I think this is not correct. 

Personal power is something which is, to a certain extent, 
in every one, and is something which we think every one can 
gain if they will strive to have it. 

The power which we have can be used for either good or 
bad, and if we use our power for good we shall have it in a 
greater degree than ever after we have done some good ac- 
tion, and if we do not use this power for the good of those 
with whom we come in contact we loaaj be certain we are go- 
ing to lose this power sooner or later. 

It is said that there are some persons with so strong a per- 
sonal magnetism that they can influence almost any one to 
do their will. 

This is true. Animal magnetism is of so pronounced a 
fact in many persons that it can be felt. They are filled 
with fire. We should not be so weak as to be influenced by 
any one who possesses this power, and we should have 
enough of this power to ward off any evil effects which may 
come up from those who ma}' wish to use their power for 
evil over us. 

Power is one of the results of knowledge and strength 
over ignorance and weakness. A sound bod}' is one of the 
beginnings of power. A conscious power lies in the mind 
that is determined to do right in all things. The great se- 
cret of true power lies in the fact of one's having the smile of 
the Heavenly Father on all of our work, the feeling that 
we are really the children of a king and that we can not 
want while our Father is alive. The power which is of 
value to us is the power to know the right from the wrong,, 
and to do the right at all times and to flee from the wrong. 
This doing right gives us conscious power. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 
DEPORTMENT OF YOUNG LADIES. 

A sculptor, if he desires to form an exquisitely beautiful 
statue, searches among the people about him for a lovel}' 
face and form, then copies it in marble or bronze. 

One who really wishes to be well behaved would do well 
to follow his example. Choose from among 3 T our acquaint- 
ances those who are well behaved, and learn, by association, 
their ways. 

This essay is devoted to the motherless girls who are liable 
not to be taught the snares that are laid for the unwary. 

A few thoughts for those who are seeking a higher plain, 
or who wish to know what their mothers might wish them to 
do. 

To begin with, I would rise early. This will be necessary 
in order to take your bath, comb your hair and clean finger 
nails before breakfast. Try alwa} T s to look neat. Some one 
will remember your looks. After bath hang up towels 
throw out water and set pitcher in bowl. Throw back bed- 
clothes and open window to air your room. Do what is re- 
quired of you in a manner that will not annoy your friends. 
If you set the breakfast-table, have a pretty way of doing it; 
don't throw victuals and dishes at the table. One can learn 
much in this matter from seeing it nicely done. 

If you wash dishes, have a certain righteous pride about 
you. Try to feel that you and your friends are too good 
to eat from half washed dishes, too good to go about on 
half cleaned walks. 

But suppose there is not much required of one, as there is 
not when there is hired help in the house Then learn some- 
thing useful. Attend the public school. Your chances of 
being a free American citizen center in the public schools. 
The}^ are fostered to root out superstition, vice and ignor- 
ance. We have no slaves in this country bought and sold, 

185 



186 Deportment of Young Ladies. 

The onry slaves are those bound down by superstition. and 
ignorance. 

If it is vacation, learn to sew. The course in plain sewing 
is as follows: First, patchwork sewed over and over with 
edges of cloth folded back. Then learn to hem neatly a 
narrow hem. Hem ruffle and gather it on to a piece of 
cloth and face back. Gather a puff and face it back on 
both sides. Run up a seam and fell the edges. Get some 
one to assist you a little, and if you appty 3-ourself you will 
do nicety. Make wide hem with measure. Then shirr, blind 
hem, etc. Keep samples of j-our work to convince your 
friends of the deftness of your fingers. By all means learn 
to mend neatly. 

Read good books, especialty the Bible. Learn some pas- 
sages and chapters b}' heart. Read it well for there are 
things in it you have not dreamed of; things you ought to 
know. There are coming soul-trying times, so treasure up 
some comforting passages. ' ' Come unto me all ye that la- 
bor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. " There 
are multitudes over the river who have thus rested, and 
about you in the daily walks of life a multitude more. 

As early as the age of thirteen, at farthest, join some 
church. Those who have the care and management of 
young people will agree with me that there is nothing equal 
to the love of Christ, the leading of the Holy Spirit, in awak- 
ening all that is lovery in the manners of }*oung people. 
The disposition to do unto others as you would that they 
should do unto you will make up for manv defects that may 
arise from inexperience. Then strive for that purit}- of 
heart that will admit us into the presence of Him who said, 
"Before Israel was, I am." 

Minor matters in manners are easily learned. Be observ- 
ing. At the table cut j-our food with a knife and eat with 
3'our fork and spoon. When returning from church or a 
walk put your gloves in your box or drawer, } r our hat in a 
hat-box, your cloak on a hook. Try to be orderly, it will 
save you time and make others happy. 

When sitting in compairy, keep your feet close together, 



Deportment of Young Ladies. 187 

and as nearly as possible for comfort out of sight. Sit erect. 
Before leaving the house to appear on the street, tip your 
mirror, turn about before it and see if your skirts hang as 
the}' should, and your suit is properly sponged and dusted. 
Loud talking or laughing or handkerchief flirting on the 
street are bad form. I would not learn to dance. I have 
known of man}* instances of bad colds taken from o\ r erheat- 
ing in this way. The air is bad in a ball room, both 
morally and physically. Don't. If you intend to visit a 
friend answer your invitation promptly and in a cordial 
manner. Let them know you appreciate their kindness and 
are grateful for it. 

While there, if they do not hire help, assist with the house- 
work. Wipe dishes, help stem berries, string beans, by all 
means make your own bed. And now about yourself. Re- 
member there are some subjects no one but your own 
mother should talk to you about, or an older lady whose 
advice you need. 

No man, however saintly his profession, has any right 
to ask you about your courses, or passionate nature, or pri- 
vate matters of that sort, unless wedded to you. 

If it is necessary to consult a physician on such private 
matters, take an older lady with you. 

Young ladies should learn to guard themselves. Persons 
who want to talk or act improperly can be avoided. Strike 
for your liberty and honor as becomes a young American of 
the nineteenth century. You do not live in a country where 
any one need be a slave. 

If the young person who poisoned herself over the way 
had attended school till she learned there was no purgatory, 
and that Christ was the only mediator, she might have been 
alive to-day. The light is beginning to shine in the dark 
places. Don't spend all your thought on your own pleasure 
and amusement nor always follow your own inclinations. 

Try to act wisely in whatever you do and you will not re- 
gret the effort though you do make some mistakes. 

Lincoln. Nebraska. 



CHAPTER XIX. 
THE CHOICE OF A COMPANION. 

I do not know that the subject which is to be thought out 
for this chapter was ever in print before. And, moreover, if 
it has ever been in print the writer has never seen it, although 
there was a time in his life when he made very diligent search 
for it. 

The choice of a companion. The choice of a mate. The 
choice of the father of your children. The choice of a mas- 
ter. The choice of a helpmate and the choice of one to 
whom all j-our bod} T will be in subjection. This is only a 
part of what is implied in the choice of a companion. 

Somewhere in Cobbett's life there is a passage where he 
says he chose a wife because she was out on the porch scrub- 
bing down the stairs early in the morning. 

This was a good wife for Cobbett, but we should as soon 
think of drawing the grand prize in some bogus lottery as to 
think of choosing a wife by her scrubbing qualities. 

And it is the same with the selection of a husband. 

At this outset I hear some one say that the women do not 
choose the men, but the men the wives. 

Let me say right here, and I will say it again after a time, 
this is a grand mistake and one which should not be placed in 
the head of every young lady. In reality, she is the 
one that chooses and the man is a cipher in the case. It 
appears to be the other way, but I am assured it is the attrac- 
tions of the woman that always make the match if there is 
any love in the case. 

The objector will be the one who will assert that the wo- 
man does not have the chance to pick out the husband, that 
the husband has to pick out the wife. I think this is also a 
grave error. The wife has the same opportunity. But I 
will not answer an} T more objections but go at once to the 
root of what I consider the eA T il of nearly all of the present 

183 



The Choice of a Companion. 189 

marriages, and an evil which causes all the divorces and all 
of the unhappiness in this world, and especially among the 
civilized world so-called. 

The generality of all classes appear to think if they get 
some one who has some propert}', or something to do, to 
make what is called a living, there is to be a good match. 

Indeed, I have heard this ever since I was a bo}^ and hear 
it now to my great disgust, and when I do hear it I am 
thinking of the fact that there are so few real love matches 
and so few happy homes. 

Many of the homes of America, to-day, instead of being 
the happy places which they should be, are really and truly, 
the abodes of misery and of discontent and adultery. 

Children are brought up in an atmosphere of want and in 
a discontented spirit, so that there is no great happiness in 
the family, while the head of the house has to slave out his 
life to support this show of happiness. This family of two 
or four, as the case may be and as the woman is smart 
enough to kill off her brood, is one nest of quarrelling and 
unhappy wretches who are at war with every one for the pur- 
pose of making a living, and then they do not know what it 
is to live in any sense. The children being hated before 
they are born, hate others when they are living. It is sim- 
ply an unhappy gathering with no more of the home than 
there will be found in a stable, and often not half as much, 
as the animals in the stable love their progeny, and the peo- 
ple in the house hate their children, while the children are 
waiting when the older ones die off so that some of the 
mone}- saved up can be expended on themselves. 

This is wrong, foolish and wicked. It is needless. And 
if there is anything which is of value in this book, this is 
the chapter where there is value. We are not telling you 
an}'thing which we heard from some one else; as we have al- 
ready said we have never heard or read one word on this 
subject, as we shall place it before you. 

We are just as sure we are right and that we have bhe 
combination on all the happ}' marriages in this world as we 
are sure the sun shines, or that there is any daylight 



190 The Choice of a Companion. 

The great ke}' to all the happy marriages and to all the 
the happy mates, is to get the one who was designed for you 
in the da}' }'ou were born. We know the only happy mar- 
riages are those where the wife and the husband are per- 
fect^ mated in love and point of serving God. And without 
this fact as a basis there is no such thing as a happy match, 
no matter what all the world may say. 

There are two things which will right themselves. One of 
these things is the possession of property. The other is any 
disparity as to age. We can not tell an}' of these things 
and it is none of our business to know anything about these 
two things which the world and the hens in the world make 
so much cackling about. 

Property is one of the things which makes much unhappi- 
ness, and we think other things being equal, the persons who 
marry and do not have much to go on when they start, are 
the best and the happiest. But that has nothing to do with 
our theory of happy marriages which we will proceed to 
show as plainly as we can. 

In the first place, we think and know there is a God who 
has made this world and all that therein is, and, while He 
has placed us here and in the possession of love and the de- 
sire to love and the desire and passion and the longing for 
companionship, there must be, and undoubtedl}' is, some 
provision made for all these possessions to be used and en- 
joyed. 

Very well. If he has made one of a pair he knows where 
the mate is. And we say with all reverence which a child 
can give the Father, there is no such thing as an unhappy 
marriage where there is the man and woman made to be 
joined together as Eve was joined to Adam by the Lord 
Himself. This must have been a true marriage of hearts 
and love, as the Father must have intended when He made 
the first "Isha," the first wife who was "bone of nry bone 
and flesh of my flesh. " 

To select this mate is not the work or the handicraft of am' 
human being and there has long been acknowledged that 
there is no possible chance for two persons to become ac- 



The Choice op a Companion. 191 

quainted with one another before they are married and live 
together for one or two } 7 ears. We think this is true. We 
know it. There is far more love in the third and even the 
twentieth year after a true marriage than there was the first 
year. But in the actual life how few there are who ever 
find this marriage of hearts. 

How to find this mate is the thing which we are going to 
show. Let the young lady who thinks she desires a com- 
panion, commence to ask God, who is her Father, to keep 
and to care for and to make known in His good time, longer 
or shorter, the one who is truly her companion. 

We say, commence to pray to God this very da}* for the 
one who is to be your companion and who is the one who is 
to be the father of the children and to be the companion of 
all of the journey through life. We know this is the true 
way of selecting a mate, and when there is one who has been 
selected by the method of prayer and formed for you by 
God, there will be no unhappiness and never a diverse ac- 
tion or any of the cross things that make so many of the 
homes on this earth a perfect hell. 

This prayer to God is not to be thrown aside as an impos- 
sible thing because one is in societ}*. There is the more 
need of the supernatural help than ever, if one lives in the 
states of society which are so artificial and foreign to nature. 

These unhappy marriages and the divorces are among the 
questions which puzzle the world and which the world is al- 
ways putting right and alwa3*s getting wrong. All of these 
things, as equality of temperament, states and castes of this 
earth will be made right if the match is from the Lord, 
wife and husband born of the Spirit of God. 

There is yet more to this trust to the God for a compan- 
ion than can be said here. There is something which the 
world does not look at until it comes into court to have the 
law's redress and then it is laughed at. 

We allude to what is called *• conjugal infidelity,'* — the 
case where a* man finds out, after marriage, of course, that 
the woman he has taken as a wife, is unfit for him sexually, 
and that some other woman will suit his body better. This 



192 The Choice of a Companion. 

is the work of the devil, and is (I wish I did not have to sav 
this, but it is true and I think every one of the } T oung 
ladies who are to take husbands should know of it and the 
proper prevention) it must be said, one of the most common 
things in the world of sin. No matter where one goes, this 
vice of adultery is one of the most common and glaring of 
sins. 

Yet I say if there is a love match, there is no more dan- 
ger of the man proving unfaithful than there is of his being 
struck with lightning. The very remembrance of a lovely 
wife will keep the biggest fool of a man virtuous. I say, 
and I know what I say, when I say that I have never known 
of any man proving unfaithful who had a wife whom he 
loved. And I also say that any match which is made with a 
fear of G-od and a desire to serve G-od in this selection of 
companions, will always have love in it and have love 
enough to sweeten all the cares of this life. In such a 
match there will be no outside influence strong enough to 
mar an}^thing which is of and belonging to the happiness of 
the family. 

The traditional mother-in-law and all the things which are 
put up as explanations of the unhappiness of the families, 
will have no groundwork to base ai^thing on in a f amily 
where there has been the love which is from G-od. 

How shall we know? 

I think it is true that when one commences to pray there 
is something which brings an answer to those prayers. And 
there will come to the one who is pra3 7 ing for the keeping of 
her mate, a serene and peaceful content which is above all the 
cares and wiles of the world. A love match which can be and is 
made in the heavens above us and is not alone a match for 
this earth but for all eternity. To explain all the particulars 
of such a love match would be impossible, as there are no 
two alike. But we will say there will be no doubt of such a 
match when the right parties are together. If there is the 
least doubt about the matter there will not be love. Wait until 
the times and all the affairs are at some quiet time and the 
one whom you think you love is out of sight, so that there is 



The Choice op a Companion. 193 

sure to be no passion accelerating the marriage, and then ask 
G-od to help you to decide about the fitness and the selection 
of the companion who is to share all the sorrows and the 
joys of life. G-od will never fail to answer this prayer. 

But, as we have said, if there is any doubt there is a cer- 
tainty that G-od is not in the match. Consider this and ap- 
peal to God. 

If any doubt exists in the mind, do not consummate the 
marriage. Break it off or hold it in abeyance and tell the 
man frankly why you wish to wait. 

If there is anything in the personal habits of the man 
that is disagreeable to you before marriage, you may be cer- 
tain those habits will be tenfold more unbearable after the 
marriage has been solemnized and you are alone with the ob- 
ject of mastery to } t ou. We may mention a few of the 
points on which the wife has been so often wrecked, that it 
seems a wonder that any one could ever go on in the same ill- 
fated road as long as the world stands. 

One of the most common of all things is the idea that 
marriage will break up a man's desire for drink. 

Now it is certain, and of a truth which is inherent in the 
brute man, that marriage will not break up anything, much 
less any desire which it implanted in the body of the man. 

The drink habit is the worst which is in the body and is to be 
dreaded more than anything which is on the face of earth. 
If a man drinks any liquor, there is an end to any happiness 
and any contentment in this life. So, if there is any lean- 
ing toward any man who is a drinker of beer or any kind of 
liquor you may set the thing right down that there is no love 
from God in this match, and if there is aii3 r affection for such 
a person it is an affection from the devil, and the sooner you 
root it out from your heart the happier 3 T ou will be. 

Oh, he ma} T promise and assert that he will leave it off', and 
make you the most solemn of all promises on his bended 
knees, but you will curse the da}' you ever saw the man if 
you allow him to persuade, 3^011 into marriage. He may 
make these promises with all of the faith in the world, and 
he himself will really believe he will leave off. but that appe- 
N 



194 The Choice of a Companion. 

tite will control him and all of his fine promises are so much 
sand on the sea shore at the mercy of an angry ocean. 
They will not stand and can not stand a moment in the face 
of temptation. That drink business will appear and claim 
him as sure as you are mortal, and while you are bearing 
your children, that is the time he will come home drunk, and 
your dreams of peace will all be shattered to a million of 
flinders. Sooner than marry a man who is addicted to the 
taste of liquor, go down to the river and soak yourself until 
there are only a few of your bones left. You will be better off 
to keep the man in your heart as a remembrance, than to try 
to live with him after he has lied to you as he surely will lie. 
Mind this before it is too late. A drinking man never tells 
the truth unless he is drunk. Your husband, when he 
drinks, is a liar; there is no truth in a drunkard and never 
was and never will be any truth in one who drinks. 

You may think this is severe and so it is. But there is 
no such thing as anything being too severe for the drinker. 
The drinker will pawn your clothes and your children and 
sell you for the drink. He will go down to the saloon and 
gamble away your supper and come home and kick you to 
bed. 

He may look nice to-day. He may wear good clothes at 
this time, but the time is coming when he will be a pauper 
and 3 T ou will have to get a divorce or go to the poor house. 

You may have one or two nice children. Your drunken hus- 
band is as liable to take an ax and knock the brains out of 
them as he is to drink. More likely. It is in the drink 
and there is no telling what he will do. Your other children 
may be idiots or drunkards. The man who goes into the sa- 
loon is the one who is not the one whom you can think of as 
a possible husband. 

He will tell you, of course, he is going to reform. If you 
think of him in any possible way, try him for two years. 

But wait. We will tell you a surer wa} T . If this man be- 
comes converted and has the grace of God he can change, 
but there is no other way that can change any man from the 
habit of drink except the power of God. This is certain. 



The Choice of a Companion. 195 

You may think he only drinks a glass of beer once in a 
while. That is all right now. But as sure as he drinks 
beer now, there will come a time when he will drink some- 
thing stronger, and then you will curse the day you were 
born. Sure. We tell you in the plainest manner that an}' 
man who drinks, or who touches anything in the shape of 
liquor is not fitted to be the husband of a hog. The sooner 
you are free from all of his temptations, the sooner you are 
a free woman. Shun the drinking man as you would shun 
the one who comes at you with a club to beat your brains 
out. 

No matter how specious his plea now, there will come a 
time when that plea will be laughed at and you will be 
scorned, when he will be bloated in the face, and you and 
the children will be ashamed of him. That time will come 
as sure as he now drinks. The taste of liquor in a man is 
something that is so hard to understand that there are mil- 
lions of unhapp} T homes now existing without your throwing 
away your life on a beer drinker. Shun him and go the 
other side of the street. Go to the other side of the world. 

Do you think you can change him? No. A million 
times, no. All the blandishments of a woman's arms are as 
nothing compared to that taste for drink, that love of a 
whiskey glass. He loves it. He can not love two things, and 
therefore he can not love you. He may have some passion for 
you. Most likely he has. All the drinkers have more or less 
of this sexual passion, but that is a short lived passion in the 
drunkard, which is soon satisfied, and the return to drink 
comes on worse and more exacting than ever. Then is the 
hour of your punishment, and like Cam you will cry it is 
greater than you can bear. 

Oh, by no means have any thought of one who is a drinker 
of beer or wine. 

Leave them as they are and if the Lord is not able to send 
you a better husband than a drunkard, then you may be 
sure that God is dead. But this may strike the eye of some 
one who is already tied to some drinking brute. What shall 
I do? 



196 The Choice of a Companion. 

We do not have a minute in sajing to you, get down on 
your knees da}^ and night and ask the Lord to perform a 
miracle for you. We tell you to have nothing to do with 
anj T one who drinks and we say to you that cohabitation 
with a drinking man is crime before the great G-od. If the 
great Grod does not heed your prayers and perform that mir- 
acle for you, then we saj- get a divorce and place the conti- 
nent between you and him. You may have children. Take 
them and fly. Go anywhere. 

Do anything rather than submit your body to the embraces 
of a drinking man. It is not who!!}' for your own sake. 
That is bad enough. But the moment one contemplates the 
consequences of the union of a drunkard with a pure woman, 
and the ill-fated offspring which are the result of the union, 
you will hasten to fly from the embraces of a drunkard as 
one would flee from a whirlwind of destruction. 

Do }'ou think you love a man who is the user of tobacco? 

We desire 3-011 to do well. But as you value anything 
which is of the earth, and as you value the brain, marry no 
one who uses tobacco in any form whatever. 

The tobacco user is not so bad or so degraded as the man 
who drinks whisky or beer, but there is the same destruction 
of life and the same destruction to your body which is in 
the association. We do not think you will understand this 
assertion, and we do not think it is of an} T use to tell you of 
it, but it is our dut}- to tell you of the evils which will re- 
sult from the union of any one who is pure to the one who 
uses this filth}' weed, tobacco. 

The woman who is married to a man using tobacco is not 
quite as likely to have children as if she were married to the 
man who does not use it, but she is likely to have some sort 
of children, and these children will be the fruit of her 
womb, and she will carry these children, one or two at a 
time for the space of nine months. 

When the spermatozoon goes into the uterus the ' ' living 
thing ; ' commences to grow. 

It takes its growth from the substance of the woman as 
that blood goes to the outside part of the womb. 



The Choice of a Companion. 197 

After a little while, say about the fourth or fifth month, 
there comes a time when the blood from the child, which is 
in the uterus, is carried back to the general circulation of 
the mother, and the blood of the child and the blood of the 
mother are in a measure one blood, although they are never 
really commingling with each other at any place in the body. 

The blood from the child finds its way to the mother from 
the uterus, and then, as these bloods commingle there will be 
an interchange of the blood. Then the time comes that 
your blood will be impregnated with tobacco from the blood 
of the chewing man. 

But wait a moment. The child takes on the same character- 
istics as the father had, and any of the diseases which were in 
the father are surely reproduced in the the mother as well as 
child. This is certain and as sure as anything can be on this 
earth. 

Now, if the father has had the syphilis, although he may 
have gotten over it in a great manner, yet when the child is 
born it will show these traces of syphilis, by its teeth, by the 
shape of the jaw bone, and by a humor on the surface of the 
body, or by something in the eyes. 

In case the sj^philis is not wholly eradicated, there will 
come to the mother who is carrying the child for the hus- 
band or man who has not this syphilis wholly cured, a com- 
mingling of the blood, and as a result from the commingling 
of the blood, the mother will have, about the fourth or the 
fifth month, a humor about her and a fever, and possibly 
the hair will drop out so that she will wonder what is the 
matter with her hair, or with her person, and being an ignor- 
ant, innocent woman she will naturally lay it to the carrying 
of the bab} T and say nothing about it to any one but the hus- 
band, who will quiet her fears; and she goes on until she 
loses this child or brings it forth as an instance of the per- 
fid} r of man. 

In the case of the tobacco chewer there is the same com- 
mingling of the blood, but with a different result. 

The syphilis has a certain course which is uniform. This 
disease will cause the mother headache, an eruption, loss of 



198 The Choice of a Companion. 

teeth, and a fever. But the tobacco in the child from the 
tobacco user, will act in a different manner. 

The pregnant woman will be sick at her stomach. By the 
way, this woman who is in the pregnant condition by the to- 
bacco chewing man, is far more likely to have a severe at- 
tack of sickness at the stomach and all the other ills which 
afflict the pregnant woman than the woman who carries chil- 
dren by the man who does not use this weed. And it is a 
fact, as I can testify from my own experience, that I have 
never seen a case of hard labor with a woman who had a 
child by a strictl}^ temperate man. I do not consider any 
one strictly temperate who uses coffee, tea or cocoa shells. 
The man who drinks beer is a drunkard, no matter if he only 
drinks one glass in ten years. And she will have all the 
other ills that any one can have from the effects of preg- 
nancy. After the third to the fifth month there will come 
some of the symptoms of mild tobacco poisoning, and then 
the woman will lose all her ambition and become a dragged- 
out old creature. 

This is no hypothesis and some fancy sketch, although 
you have not read this in some of your works on plrysiology. 
Nor can you learn it at your card parties. It is a fact from 
the observation of one who has looked at this growing curse 
to women, and does not have to bite his tongue or become 
frightened in the saying of anything which is a fact. We 
repeat this. The woman who is pregnant by a man who chews 
or smokes is going to be poisoned by this tobacco user's 
body, when she carries a child for him. And the more 
children she carries for this tobacco user, the sicker and 
weaker she will become. She becomes tobacco poisoned. 

Why? 

Because this tobacco has pervaded the semen, and the 
spermatozoa in the male are already impregnated by this 
poison, and when the child commences to grow there is 
some quality from that tobacco which will poison the mother 
as she carries that child in the uterus and absorbs the poi- 
son from that tobacco through the uterus. 

Do you think this is a fane}', or far fetched? Do you 



The Choice of a Companion. 199 

think this may not be so and you can marry a man who uses 
just a little of this poison and yet yon can be well and 
strong? 

We tell you to look around you and see the women who 
have borne children by tobacco chewing men and see how 
many of them are well and strong. 

This is something that claims all }'our attention before 
you make any step towards marrying and bearing children 
by a tobacco chewing or a tobacco smoking man. 

There is no end to this thing if you will look at it in a cor- 
rect manner. The man being poisoned, his seed is poi- 
soned. This seed in growing takes on new life and is going 
to grow in the same manner as the parent-poisoned seed. 
This poisoned seed in growing will surety poison the nest it 
is grown in, and so this poison material grows and spreads 
itself through the bod}- of the young mother, who does not 
know what is the matter with her, and surely goes to de- 
struction. We do not ask you to take our word for this as- 
tounding statement. We ask you to look at the wives of 
the tobacco users all over the country and see the effects of 
tobacco on the wives of men who use this poison weed. 

It is a series of facts which are not hid in a bushel. But 
the facts are not spoken about, as people are afraid of hurt- 
ing somebody's feelings. We do not care so much for hurting 
the feelings as we do for getting at the truth and finding out 
how to remed} T these misfortunes which are placed on an un- 
suspecting girl. Why should the girl go to destruction 
just because a man is a fool, or because the man is wicked? 

Some years ago there was a lady in this state of Minne- 
sota who had a boy; she allowed the boy to do as he had a 
mind to do, and the boy had a mind to do almost anything 
and had his wa} T at all times and in all places. After this 
boy grew a little older he had a gun and went hunting, and 
one day he hunted after something in somebody's store. 
They caught him and sent him to the penitentiary for two 
yours. 

1 saw his mother when he came out and a more woe-be- 
gone creature 1 never saw. The wrinkles on her face, and 



200 The Choice of a Companion. 

the white hair would have melted the heart of a stone. She 
was an invalid in every sense of the word, Yet, as she had 
some money, she was in the rotten caste gatherings which are 
called society. And in this society she was intriguing to 
find some good young lady to be a wife for her dear boy and 
reclaim him. 

Oh, this is a fact, as I knew the lady, and she tried to get 
one of my acquaintances to intercede for her with a certain 
young lady to go home and spend a few days with her. 

What kind of a life would that young bride lead? What 
kind of a body would she have after bearing children for 
this 3'oung brute? 

There is more to this. The children of tobacco users 
have the worst temper in the world. Among the intemper- 
ate and the insane the tobacco users come first. Always tlie 
tobacco users are the ones who have these sudden deaths 
and the shocks of paratysis which break up a man's family 
and leave them to the mercies of some one else. 

Even if there are no children, there will be the contact of 
the body, and it is impossible to keep the body in good order 
which is placed every night in the intimate companionship 
of a man who is in the habit of steeping his body in tobacco. 

Yes, there is jet more. No man, I do not care how good 
he is, can ever become a true child of G-od who is in the 
habit of stuffing his mouth full of tobacco. His brain is 
addled and he can not think. 

He does not fast and pray to God, as there is nothing in 
his mind which can allow the tobacco to be let alone. He 
is a slave to the using of this article, and there is no use to 
try to make him quit. 

When you consider these facts you will see that a tobacco 
user is one who is out of the question to have any love for, 
as a love from the G-od who made you. It is impossible for 
him to love you, as he can only love one thing and that thing 
which is his love, his idol, is the tobacco. He is wedded to 
that weed and when he becomes married to you, it is quite 
plain to understand that you are the second wife; not a legal 
but an actual bigamy, that will bring the bitter salt tears 



The Choice of a Companion. 201 

from your eyes. His first wife is yet living, and the first 
wife's name is tobacco. Think of the matter yet farther down 
and you will see that all the children of the tobacco users 
are short lived. 

All the tobacco users will deny this, but it remains as a 
fact. Tobacco shortens the life of the children as well as 
shortens the life of the parent. 

It is a law which no power on the earth will efface. It is 
-a law which will follow all of the children, and we do not 
wonder the tobacco users will hate to have you read this 
book. We have no idea that you will heed this. But you will 
think it over, and after you have raised a family of sickly chil- 
dren and seen them die, then you will be converted; and al- 
though this writer will be in the ground awaiting the final 
trump of the judgment, you will be converted and be as 
anxiously fighting this evil as the writer is now doing. You 
will now think this is only an idea and a whim about this to- 
bacco. By and by, when you see the little babe die and see 
some of the evils arising to yourself from this curse of to- 
bacco, you will begin to think, and this little thought will be 
a leaven which will work, and you will not have to get some 
doctor to talk wise to you. You will know for your own 
self, that tobacco is a curse to the body and to the mind and 
to the wife of the tobacco user, although she has only gotten 
the tobacco second hand as it were, but she is poisoned all 
the same. And so we tell you, don't many, don't love, 
don't touch a tobacco user. And if we could still thunder 
in your ears, we would thunder, don't touch, taste or handle 
the child of a drunkard or of a tobacco user. 

Tender bowels, piles, weakness, lassitude, epilepsj-, paraly- 
sis, peevishness, feeble mindedness, nearsightedness, and idi- 
ocy, together with organic heart disease, all follow the use of 
tobacco, and will follow in the children as sure as the night 
follows the day. 

When you have married this tobacco user, and see the flesh 
of your body turning from firm to tender and flabby, then 
you can call to mind what is told you here and it will not do 
you any good as it will be too late. Hut then you will know 



202 The Choice of a Companion. 

what is the matter and if by that time you have some of the 
virtues for which Christ was so noted, you will be trying to 
do some good to others and this will be your cry: "Don't 
touch or fondle or love or marry a man who uses in any 
manner the filthy weed, tobacco." 

We will pass from the drunkard and the twin brother, the 
tobacco user, to another class who are not to be touched as 
husbands, if you know what you are trusting. 

The gambler. 

We have no means of knowing who are the gamblers and 
we are unable to say who are and who are not the victims to 
this vice. But we think each girl as she gets acquainted 
with the people she is in company with and those whom she 
trusts can readily find out very much of any one's character. 

Besides this, we think if one is praying to G-od there will 
never be allowed, only for a wise purpose, the union of a 
pure woman with a gambler. The gambler is bad. But he 
can not be so bad as the man who uses tobacco or drinks. 
That is, not so bad to bodily contact. 

We think of the man who is mean, and would caution any 
young lad}' against marrying a man who is mean towards him- 
self and towards his own blood relations. We should say, don't 
touch a mean man. Do not take an}' one's word for this 
meanness, but see that you know in what his meanness con- 
sists. Many a man is said to be mean by others, but who 
is only saving and prudent. Be sure one does not influence 
you in any way against a person without a cause. As we 
have already said, do not take any one's word about things 
which are of themselves indicative of some gossip or of 
some tale which one may tell, but see that you know quite 
certainly what you believe, and why you believe it. Get the 
truth and then do not allow an}' one to rattle you out of it. 

We can not tell you whom to many. No one can do that. 
But we can tell you that if there is to be a happy marriage 
there is to be something in that marriage besides the desire to 
be married and the fact that the other party wears man's 
clothes. If a man's breath is bad you do not want him until 
that breath is better, until it is sweet. If the man's teeth are 



The Choice of a Companion. 203 

rotten, see if you can not change his ideas and have his teeth 
fixed. These minor things can be remedied and love will do 
wonders. Love will refine a man and make him better all 
over. But it will never reclaim the drunkard or the gambler. 
You are not the one who can so change a man's nature that 
he will not be the same person after the marriage as before, 
but he can be cleaned up and made to look a thousand per 
cent, better after marriage than before. 

• If you have a little fortune keep this out of sight until 
the marriage is over. Never give up the possession of any 
of your property, and do not sign away the mortgage of 
your home after } t ou are married. But all of these things 
will regulate themselves as the time rolls on, and you need 
not worry about them if your stay is on the rock of belief 
in Grod. In all of these things see to it that G-od is the first 
refuge, and do not take any one for a husband unless you are 
persuaded that the Lord is in the match. If there is any 
doubt, be sure there is something wrong and the sooner you 
allow a postponement the better for your peace and happi- 
ness. 

I now come to the last class of men who I think always 
make unhappy mates. 

This class is well dressed and this is all right. 

They alwaj^s have some one they are " going with." 

Their reputation is good enough, but they are reckoned a 
little "fast." If this fastness is in the gambling line or in 
the drinking business, you do not want to think of them. If 
this "fast" reputation comes from some girl who has lost 
her character by this young man, we say to you that all the 
blood in the world will never wash out this stain, and all the 
wealth will never be of any value in making a happy home, 
as the young man who has ever ruined a girl is cursed for 
all of this life. His children are cursed, and if you marry 
a man who has had the reputation of having ruined any one, 
you may as well make up your mind at once that with him 
there is to be unhappiness, and no matter how much there 
may appear to be some prospect to reclaim him, there is in 
reality no actual prospect of any change in the man: and 



204 The Choice of a Companion. 

you want to understand, in spite of all the talk to the con- 
trary, that on that man rests a curse, which you, and the 
children b}- him, will share to the end of life. All the ex- 
cuses of the world will never wash out the fact that there 
has been a soul ruined by this man and that G-od has cursed 
him. This curse is not seen, it is felt. And if you are de- 
sirous of knowing how it is, you have only to pray to God 
and he will show you in his own way how it is possible for 
one to look alive and yet be dead. We tell you that to shun 
the man who has already seduced a girl is to save your life 
and to save your soul. Besides this, there is a curse at- 
tached to this man which will descend to his children, and 
thus, in spite of all the things which appear on the face, 30U 
and your children will share the curse which always follows 
this betrayal of womanhood. 

If a man loved a woman well enough to seduce her, and 
would not then marry her, it does not take any prophet to 
tell that the disposition which accomplished this evil will go 
with him all the days of his life, and you can not afford to be 
the companion of one who has wrecked a woman's life. 

I have personally known of such marriages and I have 
seen their children grow up and become men and women, 
and I can say, with these examples before my face and in 
my memory, I would rather be dead and nicely covered up 
than to have anything to do with the man who is alive after 
such a breach of faith and humanity. The seduction of a 
woman is worse than murder. 

If there is anything which is cursed of G-od, it is one of 
these men or the semblance of men who think that the pos- 
session of a woman's body is to be desired to be used and 
thrown away. 

So we say, if } f ou have any regard for any future happi- 
ness, do not think of loving or of marrying any man, no 
matter what his position may be in life, who is known to 
have seduced a girl, or who has lived with any woman with- 
out the rite of marriage being performed. 

There is one point which is of interest to every young lady, 
and which there is always a diversity of opinion about, and 



The Choice of a Companion. 205 

which will always be discussed b}' all the persons who think 
they should be consulted when a marriage is to be made. 
We allude to the age of the parties who are the ones making 
the marriage. 

As to age and temperament, social position and all the 
other questions which are so complex, we do not think any 
one is able to decide about this for the parties themselves. 

The young man may be very old, and the old man will be 
quite young if his 3-outh has been well and kindly taken care 
of. The woman of any age who marries for a place and for 
a home is always going to be unhappy. We think this is 
true because the swapping off of one's body to get a place to 
sta} r or to be dressed and to get something to eat is not one 
whit better than to sell the bod}- for money. It is a species 
of prostitution which has its reward on this earth and there 
is not very long to wait for it. 

The lady who will do this under the influence of friends 
or of her relatives is sure to be unhapp} 7 . There is no such 
thing as the love coming after such a barter. There has to 
be a love which is not like any other feeling in this world, 
and this feeling will not and does not come where there is a 
loss of self respect in either party. 

So we say, do not be changed or influenced by any one 
outside of your own mind and the instincts which are im- 
planted within you. 

But at the same time there is the marriage between oppo- 
site nations. We do not think this is usually a happy match, 
for there are so many conflicting ideas that these are always 
sources of discord. This is true also of the differences in 
religion. But as for all of these things we say as we did at 
the outset, if this match is good in one's sight, and the bless- 
ing of the Lord has been asked on it there is no danger of 
unhappiness. 

There will be a perfect freedom in the family and that 
freedom will have peace, which is the first requisite of happi- 
ness. 

The fact should never be overlooked that a passion for 
one is not love. The passion for one is one thing and 



206 The Choice of a Companion. 

the love is another and an entirely different thing in the 
world. 

The meanest reptile on the globe has this sexnal passion 
for the opposite sex, but the love which is born in heaven 
has no passion about to make or mar it. There is no pas- 
sion with pure love. It is a self abnegation which can not 
be understood b} T half the world, and there are many people 
to whom love has never come, because they have never seen 
the one to whom they could give their affections. 

There will never be a happ} T match for the girl who 
takes her father's coachman as a husband. She is not hon- 
est; she has taken something which is not hers and she will 
not be happy with what is stolen. The coachman who will 
steal a girl because of her }~outh and inexperience would rob 
the girl if he had the power. This kind of a match starts 
out with a lie. It is not the match of unequal parties in rank 
which is the whole wrong, but the fact that there is no hon- 
esty in either of the parties. The girl owes something to 
the parents and she denies this debt when she gives herself 
away to one who is beneath her in this world's station and 
in this fact that she has been brought up by those who were 
her owners until she became of age. 

All these stories about happ}' love matches with such un- 
equal standpoints are lies. There is nothing in them; there 
can be no happiness in any family unless there is the bless- 
ing of God upon it. And there will be no blessing upon any 
match which is so ordered that there will be no honor to the 
parents. "Honor tlry father and mother;" and there is no 
honor to be found in the fact that the cherished daughter 
has run away with a man who is a menial in the servants' 
room. 

These matches are all passion and are always unhappj r . 
They always end badly. The offspring go to make up the 
criminal classes. They are already weighted with the wrath 
of God which abideth upon them. There can not be a 
happy match which will not have time to pray over it and do 
honor to the father and mother. 

To any such young lady who may think she has fallen in 



The Choice of a Companion. 207 

love with some hero in the guise of some menial, we say, 
stop and pray to God and God will listen to you and show 
you the way out of all these dilemmas. No girl has any 
right to think of one who is in any position where she would 
bring reproach on her parents, if there was marriage. Take 
this to your own self and act in these matters as if you were 
in their places and they in your place, and then you will soon 
get over any ideas which would drag the parents' heads down 
to the grave with sorrow. 

Another thing which is to be said in the choice of a com- 
panion; do not hurry. There is so much rush in these lat- 
ter da} T s that we had almost said, do not rush. There is 
so much haste in all of these quick and hasty matches that 
there is always sorrow in the near future. Then the saying 
comes in "Married in haste and repented at leisure." 
Don't do this. Keep all these things safe in the distance, 
and think of marriage and the choice of a companion as the 
work of the Father who doubtless has some one for you in 
His eye, and do not allow anything to persuade you into 
anything which is to be borne by others as well as yourself. 

Go to the Lord with these things which are too hard for 
man to decide, and wait until the Lord sees fit to answer 
you. There is some one for } t ou who will be everything to 
you; will be all love and kindness to you. All your desires 
will be satisfied, and there will be such sweet trust and confi- 
dence and such perfect union, if the match is from the Lord, 
that all the rest of this world will be as dross compared to 
the love and devotion which you will bear to him, and he to 
you. 

You can often be made to feel ashamed of some person 
who is of menial blood, especially if this menial is one to 
whom you are tied. But of the husband whom you will 
love and cherish there will be never a possibility of any 
shame, to you or to j T our parents. All will be love here and 
love beyond. The love will increase with its growth. 



CHAPTER XX. 
HAIR, HANDS AND FEET. 

The hair. 

Any person's hair can be made lovery and thick if they 
will take pains with it. 

The two requisites are cleanliness and exercise. 

The hair should be washed once a week by rubbing on the 
whites of three eggs, making a thorough lather, rubbing it 
in thoroughly and rinsing the head in warm, clean soft 
water. Dry the head thoroughly with a coarse chy towel 
and do it up in a net (not a night cap; a night cap is apt 
to heat the hair and render it musty) or else have it spread out 
on the pillow. 

■ It is best to do this washing at night, as one is liable to 
take cold if the head is washed in the day and the person 
goes out afterwards. 

Cut the ends of the hair once a month certain — no matter 
if you do cut but just the tips or a fourth of an inch, 
cut it. Cut off the dead ends every month as regularly as 
the new moon comes round. 

This cutting off the ends of the hair will give it a stimula- 
tion which is better than all the hair "vigors" and washes 
in the world. 

Brush the hair three minutes slowly and thoroughly from 
the roots of the hair to the ends and do not leave a spot of 
head which is not thoroughly touched from three to ten 
times by the bristles of the brush. 

Never use for any purpose the fine comb on your head. 

If you become populous in the hair, use the carbolic acid 
soap daily or put three large spoonfuls of ammonia to a basin 
of warm, soft water and wash the head thoroughly every 
night before bedtime until the intruders leave the premises. 

Another good thing to take out bugs in the head (or in 
any other part of the body) is a wash made of three 
tablespoonf uls of ammonia, and two quarts of soft water, 

208 



Hair, Hands and Feet. 209 

mix well, and wash the head thoroughly, and dry it with soft 
towels before the fire, or wrap up the head at night so as not 
to get cold. Then let some one look the head over. Keep 
the fine comb away from the head if you desire nice hair. 

The ammonia wash just spoken of will also overcome the 
offensive odor which comes from sweaty feet and the arm- 
pits. It may be used every day during the hot weather. 

Persons who are in the habit of taking a daily bath will 
not have an} r offensive odor about them. 

Oils, musks, pastes and hair dyes should be kept from the 
hair at all times. 

Any hair can be made beautiful by exercise and cleanliness. 
Keep the follicles of the hair, just under the skin, in good 
condition and you will not need any hair dyes or hair oils. 

It may take you six months to change the condition of 
the hair, but you will succeed if you have continued care 
and do not get discouraged the first week. The happy re- 
sults will agreeably surprise you. 

I am sure there is no head of hair that will need oil if that 
hair is properly taken care of. There is no special objection 
to bangs or curls (if one desires them), but there is an espec- 
ial objection to a bushy, shocky head of hair. 

Brushing will correct this bushiness, so also will this 
brushing correct the ugly appearance of the bushy eyebrows. 

Have a toothbrush as an eyebrow brush, and brush them 
twice daily, morning and night. 

It is the dairy and thorough brushing which will secure a 
good circulation of the capillaries under the skin, and secure 
nourishment for the hair. Without the daily brushing any 
head of hair can be spoiled. 

The hands. 

If the hands are coarse, rough or cracked, look for the 
cause and remove it. 

If you are a working girl, there is no disgrace or shame to 
you if the hands are coarse and rough, but we think we can 
assist you to keep them better. Have an old pair of gloves, 
and after washing the hands in warm water, in which you 
have placed some bran, wipe dry and wear the gloves to 




210 Hair, Hands and Feet. 

bed. This covering the hands with the gloves will soften 
the skin and keep the hands in much better shape. 

Of course, when 3*011 go to hang out clothes after washing, 
you should place mittens on the hands. "When you go on 
the street put on gloves. The secret of keeping the hands 
right is in keeping them from the sudden changes of moist 
to dry and hot to cold. Protect the hands while the}' are ex- 
posed to these sudden changes of the temperature. Cold days 
are destructive to the skin if the skin is not protected. 

Five cents' worth of gum benzoin with two ounces of al- 
cohol and four of glycerine will make a compound that is 
much sold by druggists under different names. It can be 
used at night to soften the hands after washing. 

Pears' soap has a reputation for softening the skin. It is 
worth fifteen cents a cake. We have used it and think it an 
excellent soap. The common yellow soaps, composed of fat 
and potash, are destructive to the outer skin, and this causes 
cracking and drying of the skin and "chapped hands." 
Rubbing the hands with glycerine and then dipping them 
in cold water and after that putting on the gloves to sleep 
in will soften the hands in a few nights. 

If one wishes to have soft, white hands, wash in oatmeal 
and soft water without a particle of soap. 

When one wishes to use a cold cream for chapped hands 
and cracked lips, try the following: 

3 Oil of almonds 4 ounces. 

White beeswax 2 drachms. 

Spermaceti 2 " 

When this is melted add four ounces of rose water and 
one ounce of orange water. Stir it while it is cooling and 
pack it in some covered glass or earthenware. 

A wash to take off freckles, tan and sunburn is made as 
follows : 

Ox-gall i pound. 

Burnt alum £ drachm. 

Camphor \ • ' 

Borax 1 " 

Bock salt 2 ounces. 

Porto Rico molasses 2 " 



Hair, Hands and Feet. 211 

Mix all together and shake up thoroughly in closely stopped 
bottles. It can be put on at night and washed off in the 
morning. If closely stopped it will keep for months. 

We think the wash of oatmeal or corn meal in warm water 
is much better than any of these compounds. If one can get 
soft water to use and keep the hands from sudden changes 
there will seldom be airy ' ' chaps " or roughness of the hands. 

If the hands are very bad make a pair of large mittens of 
cotton cloth, fill them with wet bran, so as to have room for 
the hands, then insert the hands and have some one tie the 
mittens close (not too tight) about the wrist, so the bran will 
not get out. 

We can tell you this will make the hands as soft as a 
baby's, and when } t ou get up the next morning and have 
these mittens off and wash the hands in cold water you will 
have as nice a looking pair of hands as 3*011 have owned for 
some days. If } r ou keep up this practice there will be no 
nicer hands than yours. 

What we already have said in regard to the keeping of the 
bod} r virtuous is as applicable to the hands as to any other 
part of the body. If the sexual organs are kept under the 
most absolute control there will come a beauty which is hard 
to understand, and although we can not understand it, we 
see it and see the want of it at each turn of the street. If 
we desire the hands and the face and the entire body to be- 
come a mass of beauty and filled with strength and power, we 
have to begin at the foundation and keep the powers of life 
in ourselves at once. If we do this we may be sure we shall 
have beautiful hands and become beautiful all over. 

There will never be any shyness or any bashf illness about 
us if we are strict in line of bodily continence. Heed the 
warnings of nature and have all the body under the most 
strict control of the mind. If this is done we can do any- 
thing which is in our way and have every part of our body 
as pure as a lily and as fragrant as a rose. Our hands, face, 
feet and every part of our body will be beautiful. Without 
this virtue all these appliances will be in vain. 

The feet. 



212 Hair, Hands and Feet. 

While the body should ■ be bathed wholly every day, the 
feet should be soaked once a week in warm water (soft is 
preferable), in which there is a heaping tablespoonful of 
soda, or a couple of large tablespoonfuls of ammonia dis- 
solved. The water should be warm, and the feet may remain 
in the water until all the dead skin is readily taken off. 
Then brush the feet, heels and between the toes with a brush 
and wipe them dry. Trim the toe nails close and cut off the 
corns at this time, if you have any. The toe nails should be 
scraped down a smooth as possible. If corns are painful, 
soak the feet in warm water and soda (two heaping table- 
spoonfuls to three quarts of warm water), and after paring 
them down close, touch them with a drop of the oil of origa- 
num. 

It is a misfortune to have anything like corns, but if you 
have them do not lose any time in getting rid of them. 

The origanum oil is one of the best things we know of, 
but sulphuric acid in little doses, touched with the fine point 
of a match, will soon cause the corn to disappear. 

After the feet have been cleaned once a week for several 
weeks there will be no danger of any further corns appear- 
ing. 

The Israelites were ordered to bathe their feet often, and it 
is quite certain there was never a fairer skinned people on 
the earth than the ones who obeyed the Mosaic law. 

When it is considered that all the feet have a circulation 
which is changed to the head every two minutes and that 
the blood in the feet is the same as the circulation of the 
face, and that all of the circulation of the body is completely 
interchangeable, it is seen how important it becomes to keep 
the feet clean. 

If the feet are kept clean there will be much less mending 
of the stockings. No stocking can be kept whole where the 
heels are filled with dead skin and the toe nails are allowed 
to grow until the}' are sharp enough to scratch gravel. 

There is also another item concerning the feet which is not 
seen in print It is this: When the feet get cold there is 
a cold all over the bod}'. When the feet are clean there will 



Hair, Hands and Feet. 213 

be much more warmth in the feet and the general circulation 
will be better. 

If we put these two items together we can see the great in 
timac} T between unwashed and uncared for feet and a disease 
of the lungs. Filthy feet are sure to bring diseases to the 
lungs. If one's feet are filthy there is filth all over the 
body. It is true the feet are out of sight, but the circula- 
tion of the body comes to the gaze of persons on one's face 
and hands and on the neck. 



CHAPTER XXI. 
PERSONAL HABITS. 

Whatever may be your education or accomplishments in 
books, or your lack of them, never allow 3*ourself to eat with 
your mouth open or to form any habit of making an}* noise 
with the lips, mouth or throat when eating*. If 3*011 have 
any of these habits break them up and overcome them at an}* 
cost whatever. Eat alone in some place, or go without 
your food until 3'ou can thoroughly masticate the food with- 
out drinking, and swallow without making airy noise what- 
ever with the mouth or throat. 

While you are at the table never sup or suck your drink, 
whatever it may be, out of a spoon with a sucking noise or a 
supping sound which is so painful to hear. 

Do not trust 3*ourself in company to eat a mouthful until, 
in your own chamber, alone, } t ou are competent to eat any ar- 
ticle of food without this disgusting habit of drinking while 
eating, and to take soup without making a particle of noise 
Avith the lips or throat. Refuse every invitation to eat at 
any place until you are mistress of your own bod}* in all its 
parts. 

If 3*011 have any impediment in swallowing, or if there is 
an}* gulping, practice drinking alone in 3*our own room small 
swallows of water, until the3* can be taken without a sound. 
If this does not do, fast and totalty abstain from water and 
food for twent3*-four hours and commence again. This is 
almost a certain cure. Usually where there is an3* trouble 
with the throat there is trouble with the sexual organs. 
Think of this matter. Never pick the teeth in the presence 
of others, or show 3*0 ur toothpick. 

If you make airy noise with 3*our mouth while 3*011 are eat- 
ing, it is one of the best methods to take a good drink of 
water before 3*011 go to the table, and so have the stomach 
filled with water and have moisture enough to keep the 

214 



Personal Habits. 215 



glands soft and filled with moisture while you are eating. 
This will help to keep }<ou from drinking at the table and 
will also assist you from making any noise while the fluid is 
going down the throat. Keep away from the swallowing 
habit with the mouth open. 

We say to you, do not go to some one's table thirsty, and 
have to disgust all the others at the table with some noise 
that you are as much ashamed of as they are. The noise 
can be broken up and overcome in a very short space of 
time, if you will take a little time and attempt to overcome it 
while you are away from every one else, so they can not hear 
you. 

By practicing on this habit while you are out of sight and 
out of hearing you will soon be able to swallow without a 
murmur of noise. There are some habits which will be dis- 
gusting to 3 t ou the moment you see them, but you will be 
too well bred to make any demonstration or notice them in 
the least particular while }T>u are in their presence. Think 
over all 3^011 have seen in others and avoid all things which 
would be unpleasant to others in 30U and are unpleasant to 
you in others. Note how the best bred people eat, drink 
and act, and, if necessary, copy their manners. 

So act as to make yourself agreeable, but do not try to mince 
or to make mouths or to cast sideways glances at one in any 
part of the room or street. Look straight ahead and have 
the eyes open. Downcast glances and those little sideways 
looks are such as the girls of the town make toward those 
whom they wish to ensnare, and there will be some one who 
will see you and these things will be remarked about you 
when you are absent. But this is only the least part of it. 

You will know why you made the sideways glances and 
this knowledge in you will be worse on your own mind and 
degrade your own self respect far more and hurt your coun- 
tenance far more than it would do to have persons talk about 
you a thousand times behind your back. It is your own self 
respect that keeps you clean and sweet, and not some ones 
else self respect. What some one else has is hers, What 
is yours should be your own. In these personal habits there 



216 Personal Habits. 



is nothing which will give you so much stability of mind as 
to know you are correct, to know }^ou are doing right. 
This knowledge will come to you at once when you feel as- 
sured that you know how to act. 

While there is any habit about you which is uncertain 
there will be an element of uncertainty in the mind and you 
will feel badly. Then will come the bashfulness and the 
slryness and all of the unpleasant feelings which make one 
so miserable. 

There are the habits of etiquette that should be learned and 
the best method of learning these habits is to have some eld- 
erly lady friend to whom you can go and ask and let her tell 
you where your faults lie. Happy is the girl who has a 
mother who can tell of these little things while she is grow- 
ing up. 

There are many things which } T ou should never do, or if 
3'ou think of doing these things banish them from your mind 
at once, for the ver}' thought of them will burn you all the 
wa} T through and leave you in a much worse state than you 
have ever been before. 

Never try to get airything for nothing. Never take an}- 
gift or any present from an}- one (unless a near relative) who 
is in any way acquainted with you. Do not accept any at- 
tentions from any one whom you would not introduce to 
3-our mother or to your father and to every brother you have. 
Allow no strange man to talk with you. Do not get easily 
acquainted. The acceptance of any present makes 'you a 
person in some sort of debt to the one who has made } t ou a 
present. "A gift turneth the heart." No matter how tri- 
fling the thing which is given, do not accept it, but decline 
positively with all the apologies which are needed. 

Do not accept it in your mind for a moment. Do not 
handle anything belonging to an} T one else, and we may say 
with much emphasis, don't touch anything which you do 
not have from your parents or }-our brothers or sisters, and 
under no circumstances allow yourself to covet or to glance 
at anything, to long for it, that is not yours and you can not 
afford to buy and pay cash for at the time of the purchase. 



Personal Habits. 217 



In the matter of nuts and candies do not take them from 
any one and do not eat them if they are forced upon you. 
No matter how much you may desire them, do not touch 
them from a stranger. 

If you are in a strange place and want paper or pens and 
ink and can not afford to buy them, go without until you 
can buy them. Accept nothing from any one else unless it is 
water for the needed washing and the loan of a towel. But 
you are and will be subject to all sorts of dreams if you use 
some one's towel. Have your own. 

There are no circumstances in which you should be made 
to borrow any article of dress unless you have been drowned 
and resuscitated, and in such case it will be allowed that you 
may wear some garments until you are at home again. If 
you have borrowed anything, take the first opportunity to 
wash the garments and return them as soon as there is any 
chance to get the things returned. When you return the things 
, which are borrowed, do your best to thank the parties who 
have been kind enough to loan you their things, and try 
not to be drowned again. 

We urge you to let this matter sink deep into your heart 
and resolve that, outside of your own intimate family circle, 
you will not have anything which is not your own, and that 
which is bought and paid for and is your very own. 

You should learn at the very outset of life that there can 
be but very few more unhappy persons than the ones who 
are in the habit of borrowing. This applies to all things 
and every condition of life. It is an old and true saying 
which runs: "He that goes a borrowing, goes a sorrow- 
ing." Don't borrow, don't beg; starve in 30111* shoes be- 
fore you take anything which does not belong to you wholly 
and solely. A thief has the direct curse of God upon her. 
With these resolves and the grace of God in your head 3011 
will have an independence which the world will bow down to 
and which will conquer the world. 

Your associates. 

There are plenty of people who will wish to associate with 
you as long as you are well dressed and are supposed to be 



218 Personal Habits. 



in good society. These people are everywhere and it is im- 
possible to get rid of them wholly. There is this in all 
of your associates which will keep 3*011 very near right, and, 
if } t ou take the advice given you elsewhere about the asking 
of Grod for everything, there is no danger of your getting in- 
to any difficulty about them. 

There are some things to be said which 3*ou will do well to 
heed. There are some persons who will wear your shoes and 
youi' hat and your socks and your underwear, and of such 
associates the sooner 3*011 are clear, the better for you and 
3*our fortune. 

You can never do this. For you already believe that 
there is something in every person which is different and if 
you put on some one's clothes, you will be apt to catch some 
disease sooner or later and which will make you very sorry. 
Even if no disease is caught there will be some smell or 
odor, which comes from some one else's clothes. More than 
this, we advise you never to allow 3-ourself to accept, unless 
from some very dear friend of yourself or your mother or 
some relative in whom 3*ou have every confidence, am' gar- 
ment or article of wearing apparel or anything which has 
ever been on the bod}' of an3* living human being. Do not 
touch, much less wear, am* person's old clothes. Do not 
touch them and above all do not wear them on your person. 
Let this lesson go a little farther and avoid any picking up 
of anything which 3*011 may* find on the street or in any 
place whatever. "We even go farther and sa3* it is quite bad 
policy to read some books which have been handled 03* 
other parties and which may contain disease germs ready to 
fasten themselves in your flesh and form the most unsightly 
sores. If you do not catch them for 3-ourself, 3*011 can 
transmit these disease germs to others. This may seem to 
be carrying this matter too far, but the more one thinks of 
the possibilit3* of the absorbents and the prevalence of 
frightful forms of contagion there is do limit to the care 
which should be exercised to prevent one's body from these 
pests. 

As long as 3*011 are a young lady there should be this care 



Personal Habits. 219 

exercised for yourself and your parents and your relatives. 
When you are the mother of children there will be the same 
necessity for this supervision of one's body so as not to 
take an}' of these diseases, and there will be an increased care 
needed if one has children. Then your thoughts wilf assist 
in preserving them. You should take care whom you 
embrace and whom you kiss. Kissing is a foolish habit un- 
less among one's own relations and even among the relations 
there is the same objection to all forms of intimacy which 
we deprecate. A contact with any other person's body is 
liable to give you some disease. Keep your body pure as 
snow and as chaste as ice. 

Always late. 

There are some people who are always late and who think 
some one else is to blame for what they have neglected to do 
themselves. They are good enough girls (and there are 
boys in the same song) and appear well enough when they 
are dressed up and are out on a call. They can sing 
"When the dewdrops fall," and they are good when there is 
not much of anything to be depended upon. But when there 
is anything to do or anything to be depended upon, these 
late girls are anywhere but in the place where they are 
needed. And they suffer for this foolishness. They suffer 
untold agonies for the things they have neglected. The}- 
have their bread burn at the very time when that bread 
ought to be the very best. They have their underclothes 
soiled at the time when the} 7 ought to be cleanest. And when 
they are to go to some place it seems as if all the fates in the 
world are against them. They are late in getting up and 
late in going to bed. They are always late at the train and 
they are always late at an entertainment and late to the 
church. They are late everywhere. We see these girls always, 
everywhere, and when they are gone into their old age they 
are sitting in some one else's chimney corner and sewing or 
mending for some one else, or they are in the poverty house. 
1 never saw a woman of the town but what was one of the 
Late girls. Oh, it is one of the very worst things which can 
happen to any person on the earth — to be late. This being 



220 Personal Habits. 



late to the train, late to the school and late to the table and 
late in going to bed and late in getting up and late in all the 
good things in this life. It is simply a habit, but it is more 
than a habit. It is in some persons' blood. They do not 
seem to be able to help themselves. The}' mean to do bet- 
ter and they do try, but the idea that there is time enough 
seems to set them wild as to the time to do the proper 
things which are really needed to be done at once. 

Can this foolish habit and this misfortune be corrected? 

Yes. It can be corrected b}' the most persistent effort 
only. It must be taken up and eradicated just as a garden 
should be weeded. One thing has to be borne in mind all the 
time, and that is to do the next thing. Keep doing and do 
not stop to rest a moment if you have that dreadful habit. 
Go to bed earty and go to sleep. If you can not sleep at 
the time you put yourself on the bed there is something 
wrong with jouy habits. Get up and wash in cold water. 
Get up and walk. Get up and read. Get up and do some- 
thing. 

Napoleon's idea of getting to sleep was to put one of the 
fingers over on the pulse of the other wrist and count • ' one 
two, one two, one two," until he was asleep. This will do 
it in some cases as the writer can speak from experience. 
But the best thing to enable one to go to sleep, is to go with- 
out an} T supper. Drink a glass of cold water and do not eat 
anj'thing. This will give you a quick sleep. But if, after 
trying all of these things, you find you are not able to go to 
sleep at once, }'ou want to take notice that you do not need to 
take an} T medicine. The specific is in } T our mind. You must 
help yourself, and there is no one that can help you but 
your own self and the God who made you. 

Coffee and tea are great things to make }~ou keep awake. 
Don't touch them under any consideration, and if yo\x do, 
and wish to get out of the most unlucky habits in the world, 
stop taking them at once. But if you do not touch these 
drugs and can not go to sleep and you find the night is pass- 
ing without 3-our getting to sleep, and the washing of your 
body does not do you any good, then try the counting and 



Personal Habits. 221 

try to recall the events of the day as the}' all occurred. This 
will exercise the mind and give some good thoughts, espec- 
ially if you are on the right desire to do some one some good 
and beginning with your own self. 

Putting the feet in cold water for the space of two to ten 
minutes is a good thing to do if it is not near the time of the 
menses. Not a bit of danger of your taking cold, as we 
have explained in another place. 

However, we hope you will get to sleep at once and be 
ready to jump out of the bed the moment you wake in the 
morning. Don't wait a minute after you have become 
awake. Make a start and go to the washbowl and plunge 
the arms and hands into the water and then to your head 
carry a sufficient amount of water to wash your brain clear 
of all the cobwebs which sleep sometimes brings to one. 

Wash the bod}' all over and wipe dr}' and quickly. 

Put on clean clothes all over if it is a possible thing each dav. 
Whatever you do, do not wear the same things which you 
have worn in the night. Keep a separate suit; if you have 
only two suits, see to it that one is worn in the night and 
one is worn in the day time. Never, under any circum- 
stances, wear the same thing in the night and in the day 
time. It is ruinous to the body and ruinous to the brain. 
You can not be clean while you do this filthy act of wearing 
the same thing in the night which you are carrying around 
in the day time. The filth which has been accumulating on 
your skin in the daj^ time should never have any chance to 
be reabsorbed in the night time when you are asleep. 

Sign-boards. 

When one is traveling along an unknown road and finds 
at certain distances a sign-board on a tree or a post which 
says, "to such a place — miles," one is sure of being in the 
right way. 

In this chapter we have grouped a set of sign-boards 
which will be of value to you as you read them. 

Never tell a lie. Do not do this lying in a joke. It can 
not do any good and this habit soon shows itself in your 
face. After you commence lying there is a sign-board on 



Personal Habit* 



3'our face which says: "This is a liar. " It may be done at 
first as "a good joke," and all that, but the habit of lying, 
when once formed is one of the hardest things to be unlearned. 

It is a common habit. This is a l} T ing age. The children 
who go to school and are taught to write "compositions" 
out of their heads and are given prizes for the best "story," 
are in reality practiced liars. We do not think this is a 
correct or a good education, and we know this is not the 
way to have the brain in one of the conditions of success or 
of advanced invention. 

Besides, this habit grows on one, and while it is only a 
harmless joke to-day, to-morrow there is some need to tell a 
lie to shield one's self, or to save some one else and the case 
becomes one of hopeless ]} T ing. 

If you can not tell the exact truth, do not say a^'thing. 
Keep the mouth shut and have a thought of the throne of 
God and of your own self rather than to tell or say anything 
which is not exactly true. Above all, the one who lies is one to 
whom the face of God is hid. When the storms come down 
and the reliance on something which is of greater power 
than all the world becomes absolutely necessary, to keep 
one's mind steady, then there is the darkness which is alwa}~s 
in a liar's mind, and sorrow which will not be comforted. 

Teach your tongue to tell the exact truth or else do not 
talk. Keep your mouth shut, unless it is to be opened to 
speak the exact truth. 

Look, listen, reflect, place all facts together, but do not 
allow your tongue to make a motion which is not precisely 
the truth, and 3'ou will have one of the fairest complexions 
and one of the clearest minds in the world. Truth is a mind 
clearer. Truth is a mind strengthener. The exact truth is 
one of the attributes of God. You can not become God, but 
you may be like Him, and we are sure He will love you if 
you are striving to follow His wa}s. His wa}'s are strict 
truth. Do you follow exact truth, and if you can not tell 
the truth, shut the mouth. 

When 3'ou find out that a person is wrongly informed and 
yet is honest in desires, wait and you will have an opportu- 



Personal Habits. 223 

nity to correct the person and you will have gained a friend. 
But, if you find a person who is wilf ally blind and does 
not wish to know the truth, or will not obey the truth, do 
not associate with him, or have any business transactions 
with him or her. 

This will also apply to all of those who are ready to take 
advantage of some one else. If they will lie or steal from 
some one else there is only an opportunity needed to do it by 
you. Shun any intimacy with all of this class. Keep them 
from knowing anything of your affairs and your mode of 
thinking. Get out of their way and do not go with them if 
there is any way of avoiding it. If you find out a store to 
be tricky, let that store alone. Have nothing to do with 
anything in the shape of lottery winnings or their habits or 
an} T game of chance. All these thing are destructive to the 
mind. 

If any of your associates are tying for anything, leave 
them. Allow 3'ourself no company, rather than to be in 
such company, which will have you in the same class sooner 
or later. 

Do not commit an}' of what are called practical jokes on 
any one; or have any companionship with perons who do. 
If you do not heed this, there will come a time when one of 
these so-called practical jokes may take away your best 
friend, and then you will have a lesson which will be burned 
into your head as with a red-hot iron. But it will not bring 
back your friend. The friend will be dead to you. Practi- 
cal jokes kill the strongest friendship. 

Have the habit of looking a person directly in the eye 
while you are talking to them. You can thus learn to read 
what is in their mind and so stop the moment 3-011 find your 
talk is going for nothing. If a person doubts your word, 
sa}' nothing and do not allow one of the class to question 
you concerning anything; say that 3011 rather have nothing 
to say about the subject which is before 3 T ou, and keep your 
own counsel. Especially is this to be followed about the con- 
cerns of a third part}'. You have no more right to discuss 
the affairs of some other person without 3'ou know all of the 



22-1 Personal Habits. 



circumstances (which is almost impossible from the nature 
of this world), than you have to place your hand in their 
pocket and take out the money they have earned. 

Never allow yourself to make any remarks on the dress of 
the passers-by or of your acquaintances, or of any one. 
Never turn around to look at any one; never look behind you; 
look ahead. Think what you may, but do not allow your ton- 
gue to utter it aloud. Keep your thoughts in your head and 
the}' will return to strengthen you. 

Wherever you may be, do not allow anything to cause 
you to giggle and to laugh at circumstances which may be 
ridiculous or seem to be funny or annoying to some one else. 
Be careful how you open the mouth and remember, while 
you are laughing at some one else, there ma}* be others 
laughing at you. 

There is a sure rule which will always help you to find the 
thing to do in the exact time and in the exact place. ' ' Do 
unto others as you would that others should do unto you." 

* ' When you are in doubt, do not act. " This was a Roman 
maxim, and is probably much older than Rome. It is good 
to remember. But there is something still more sure while 
in any uncertainty. Think how Christ would have acted if 
He were in your place. This will be your guide and there will 
seldom be a mistake in any situation you ma}* be placed in. 

Never laugh on the street. Never look at a dog-fight. 
Avoid all the crowds of the street. If it is in you, do not 
seek to go into the dances or ball rooms; banish these de- 
sires. There is no happiness there and there is much unhap- 
piness. You can not gain anything in these places and 
there is much to be lost which can in no way be regained. 
One night in a ball room with the crowded breaths and the 
dust, as well as the excitement of music and refreshments, 
is not such as will assist any young lady in preserving her 
health of body or her equipoise of mind. The so-called 
"sociables" are another species of jams that are destruc- 
tive to happiness and to good health. Keep away from 
them unless you have so much money and so much time that 
you do not know what to do with them. 



Personal Habits. 225 



It may appear to you that acquaintances are to be de- 
sired. We do not think so. What is wanted is a friend 
who is true as steel and as pure as fine gold. These true 
friends are not to be found in these gatherings. People go 
to these places for the same purpose that they go fishing, to 
catch something, and to have what is called fun. You do 
not have to be caught and jon should be no subject for any 
fun for others. 

As for acquaintances, they will be made anywhere, and at 
any place they can be judged better than at a place of jams. 
Besides if we are correct about the Lord ruling this earth, 
there will be all the acquaintances which are for you, if you 
keep away from these places and strive to do some good to 
some of God's poor. If you have any time which is heavy 
on your hands, go and see some poor persons and do good. 
You shall be blessed. 

When you have more time, write down what you know in 
your daily memorandum, and if that is filled, read from the 
Bible. Fill the mind full of good knowledge; so shall you 
become wise in yourself and blessed of God. 

Parthenia. 



Some things are so patent to others and we can not see 
them ourselves that a few words concerning them will not be 
out of place. 

Sulkiness is habit as much as talking. Some children are 
naturally sulky and take it from the mother's milk- others 
have acquired the foolish habit and while they have some 
good sense they should break the habit up at once and thor- 
oughly. Sulkiness consists in thinking we have been abused, 
and we are going to punish some one by spiting ourselves. 
A child will go without its supper to spite some one and be 
as mulish as a pig, just because it can not have a certain ar- 
ticle to eat. 

A girl will spite some one of her acquaintances by 'refus- 
ing to do something or to go somewhere, or will say some 
hateful thing which will rankle in the minds of those who 



226 Personal Habits. 



hear what is said, and become a source of fear and of distrust, 
when she could, by the refraining from these habits, be a 
source of pleasure and also be happy herself. The going 
without the supper and of pouting are habits of sulkiness 
which are in themselves sources of unhappiness to the girl 
who is the unfortunate possessor of this habit. 

The best way to get out of this sulkiness is to think that 
one wants to be happy, and the best and only way to be 
happy is to do good to some one else and not to think about 
3'our own self. It is the good we do to others which brings 
us happiness and not the good we do ourselves. If we say 
a thing which makes some one else feel badly, we do not so 
much hurt the person to whom we have sent the angry word. 
as we do ourselves. The angry word returns to us and 
we are more unhappy than the person that has received the 
blow. This is the secret of all happiness, to do good to 
others. The moment we think we can be sulky and punish 
some one b}~ some act of ours, that is the moment we are su- 
premely unhappy. 

No matter if we have been insulted, or abused, or there 
has been something which does not please us our way, let 
it all pass as pleasant^ as we can and have nothing to re- 
member as a folly of our own. Say nothing which can re- 
turn to us as some of our sayings when we were angry. 
Control the temper and keep the sharp word in the mouth 
unspoken; we shall be happier. And if we have been in- 
sulted and abused, leave the place and do nothing which will 
prevent any one from saying we have lost our temper and are 
foolish when we are angry. Let no one see that we are ever 
angry. Above all things do not allow any one to know that 
you may think yourself insulted. If you are in some one's 
house shorten the visit as much as possible but do not pocket 
the insult nor the sharp repartee nor retail some goss'p about 
others. Shorten the visit and resolve in the future not to 
have anything to do with the part} who you think has in- 
sulted you. But say nothing. Do not do anything which 
could be retailed in any place or among any of your ac- 
quaintances to your detriment, or for the purpose of having 



Personal Habits 



any fun or laughter at your expense. Be a lady above all 
things and be a lady under all circumstances. 

Kansas. 



Friends. 

A great many people have an idea that the life we lead 
here is of so much importance that all they have to do is to live 
well and be happy here and the next world will take care of 
-itself. These people live for themselves, and to gratify 
themselves they are ready to do anything and to say any- 
thing, even if it is against their best friends, so they may 
gain something for the present. A lie in these people's 
mouths is to them of no moment, so that they can ac- 
complish their ends. Their object being themselves, the 
friends, the honor, the truth, and all the finer and nobler feel- 
ings, are put out of sight so that they can just now accom- 
plish their ends. And it is but truth to say that they usually 
accomplish their ends. But when they have all they go af- 
ter, they find that they are not as well off as they thought 
they would be when they had succeeded in their undertaking. 

We hope you will learn early the fact that a friend is a 
gift, and a gift of such a nature that all we can do to retain 
that friendship is not too much, if the party is really a 
friend. A friend is priceless. We have known of parties, 
who to place themselves in a different light among their ac- 
quaintances, have told lies on their best friends and received 
a temporary benefit. But they lost their former friend and 
after all they were worse off than they were when they were 
in the original position. Oh, no, do not tell a lie. Do not 
betray a friend. Do not betray any confidence. If 3-011 
have a friend who you think has misused you, say nothing. 
Let time cure that wound. Do you keep that wrong in your 
own breast and sooner or later that friend will come to 3011 
and the matter be settled in a manner that will give 3-011 
great comfort. But if you tell a lie — if you betray all the 
confidence that was once between 3-011 and that friend, the 
time will come when 3 T ou will want to make up, and the 
wounded friend will be so hurt that there will be no making 



228 Personal Habits. 



up in the world. Cherish every friend that 3^011 niay have. 
A friend is a gift from God. Your wants in this life may 
be great. But see God for those wants and do not burden 
your friend, who may have all the burden that it is possible to 
bear. Go without something your own self and bear a part 
of the burden that falls on every man, woman and child. 
Do not shirk 3~our burden. Do not get in such a place that 
you have to think that you must tell a lie or betray the con- 
fidence that was once between you and } T our friend. Keep 
your own counsel and see if the cloud does not blow over 
and let the sunshine in by and by. 

If your friend has betrayed } t ou, never let it be known. 
Bear the betraj-al without a murmur. Lock up the secret in 
your breast and keep it between you and God. Remember 
this — Christ is the nearest and dearest, ever-present friend 
you can have. He will never betray or leave you. He is 
love, strength, power and eternal life. Go to Him for a con- 
stant friend and whatever comes to you He will never betray 
or leave you. Oh, what a powerful, loving friend you leave 
when you forget that Jesus is your owner and master who 
has bought you with a price and waits for you to turn your 
feet and heart to him. If you have earthly friends thank 
him for them. If you have no friends remember Him who 
is surely your best friend. Indiana. 



Not so nice, but useful to know. 

When a young lady goes into the world and thinks all the 
people whom she meets are the same clean and health};, 
sweet persons as her own people, she is liable at certain 
times to find the difference to her great discomfort and to 
some cost before she gets through the life and the acquaint- 
ance. 

To obviate some of these things which are so unpleasant 
and so very disagreeable to the inexperienced, and who may 
be never so pure and yet come in contact with these pests of 
society, this chapter is written. 

We know there are mam~ persons who will read this and 



Personal Habits. 229 



condemn the entire book and say it is not fit for any young 
lady to read, but as I have some daughters myself, and I 
wish them to know of these things, I am quite sure that the 
knowledge which comes from the reading of this chapter will 
more than outweigh the disagreeable things which will come 
up before .we have done with the chapter. 

Among many of the reasons why a young lady should 
know of these things is because the very persons whom she 
may trust and whom she^ will trust are the ones who will 
never aid her in this knowledge, but when she is afflicted, 
will give her the cold shoulder and talk about her behind 
her back. 

So I am convinced that every young lady should know of 
some of these disagreeable things so as to keep clear of 
them. She will find enough of things to fear which are not 
and could not be laid down in this book. With these pre- 
liminary remarks, we will commence our advice. 

When you go visiting, or to work at any place, always 
take your own toothbrush, your own towel, your own hair- 
brush and comb and soap. Under no circumstances, allow 
your body to come into contact with the garments which 
have been worn by any one else, and for this reason always 
take your own nightdress and what napkins you may think 
may be needed while 3^011 are away. Think over all of these 
things in detail and supply yourself while you have the op- 
portunity, and see that all of the things which are to be nec- 
essary for the use of your body are well supplied before you 
start to leave your own home. 

Make a sure thing that you will not have to borrow any- 
thing while }*ou are away from home. Feel certain that 
there is to be no contamination of your body with other 
bodies while you are away from the home roof. Your towel, 
flesh brush, soap, tooth and nail brushes should be in a little 
leather case, or in a linen case which you can make your 
own self. These can be kept in a compact form and 
where 30U know 3 T ou can put your hands on them in 
the darkest room. So you should also take a. drinking 
cup with you on the cars, and never drink after the rest of 



230 Personal Habits. 



the passengers. Take an extra collar button with you and 
always have something to protect the hands on the train and 
yet not wear your best gloves on the smoky and grimy cars. 

Night caps have gone out of date, but we advise you to 
have a night cap and to wear it in a strange bed. Also, if 
you think of any waste to your body, you had best have a 
napkin and see that it is properly fastened before you go into 
some one's strange bed and wake up in the morning and 
find the bed soiled. Think of these possibilities and act so 
as to prevent any of these annoyances which you will feel if 
anything happens while 3-011 are asleep.- These are small 
things, but the} 7 show the well bred lady as differing from the 
ordinary miss who- has never received anything of an educa- 
tion. Think of yourself as a perfect, well bred, educated, 
thinking lad}*. We have said for 3*011 to have nothing in 
common use with an}* other person. We will make a 3-et 
more particular assertion and tell 3-ou never to use the things 
airy one else has used. To make this assertion in detail, let 
us particularize. 

Never use the same towel. Rather not wash the body 
than to wipe on a towel where one with the itch or the lep- 
ros3* ma3* have wiped just before 3*ou. 

Do not use the same seat when the closet is to be used. 
When 3*ou go to a strange closet, take a piece of a newspaper 
with 3'ou and place that paper on the seat so that an3* portion 
of your bod3* does not touch the seat which some one else 
has been sitting on. Do }*ou think this is a needless precau- 
tion ? Listen. There are three kinds of causes of diseases 
which can be transmitted through the medium of the closet 
seat. 

1. Bugs. Under this head come the lice, crabs, pin- 
worms and tapeworms. 

2. A plant or a series of plants of the fungus variety 
which will cause the most intense itching and also worry 3*ou 
a great deal in getting rid of this cause of disease. 

3. A venereal disease which can be and often is transmit- 
ted to some innocent person who unconsciously uses the 
same seat that some public woman or some unfortunate 



Personal Habits. 231 



wretch has used just a moment before. So we say to you, 
never use the seat of some public closet without taking some 
paper and covering that seat so that your body will be free 
from all these sources of disease. 

Should you be so unfortunate as to contract any of these 
miserable things, we will tell you how to get rid of them at 
this time, and not have to refer to them again. 

Bugs. The proper way for any ordinary case of lice is to 
wash the parts in a solution of carbolic soap-suds, made 
rather strong, and after you have dried the parts, apply the 
following solution : 

Carbolic acid 1 ounce. 

Glycerine 6 " 

Water 6 " 

Mix well and apply thorough^ to all the parts which are 
affected by the burning and the itching. 

Never apply any preparation of mercury or any prepara- 
tion which is sold under the name of < < blue mass " or " mer- 
curial " ointment, as that will cause a much worse disease 
than the bugs. 

The carbolic acid is a poison and will certainly kill all the 
bugs as well as all the plants which may be caught by an 
unwary person. 

The ammonia wash which is spoken of under the head of hair 
and feet is most excellent to cure these "caught" diseases. 
Should this not cure at once, and should there be little sores 
which appear as if they were eating down into the flesh, you 
have caught a venereal disease (which is not so uncommon 
as the readers might suppose), and this sore is called a 
chancroid. 

To cure this, get some pure calbolic acid and wipe the sore 
out dry. Then have a pointed match, dip the end or the 
point of the match into the acid and touch all of the sore, a 
little at a time, until it turns white. Then dry the sore and 
if there is any place which is not touched, touch it over 
again. When this is all white, dry it and apply an oil as 
follows: Olive oil. twelve parts, carbolic acid, one part; mix 



232 Personal Habits. 



together and shake up well. Apply this on some absorbent 
cotton, and keep the sore wet with this oil until it heals up. 
If it has any smell, touch the carbolic acid to it two or three 
times a claj-, and then apply the oil as before. Keep it from 
chafing and keep it clean, but do not wash it too much, as 
the washing is not what is needed. It needs to have this 
foul poison and this parasite, killed by the acid. 

Should the urine become scalding, drink freely of a tea 
made of flaxseed and lemon. Two heaping tablespooonf uls of 
whole flaxseed and a whole lemon, peeled, mixed together in 
one and a half pints of warm water. It may be sweetened. 
Should this not relieve it, try the drink of a strong infusion 
of slippery elm bark. 

Three heaping tablespoonf uls of soda to three quarts of 
warm water will make an effective wash for nearly all of the 
pests which one may catch in the cars, but it must not be 
placed in contact with the hair of the head, as it will soon 
take out the hair and it will take a long time to have it grow 
in again. 

It is to your interests to have your body pure rather than 
to have to do any doctoring afterwards. Think of what you 
are doing. 

Shoes and buttons. 

There is a passage in the Bible which reads, ' ' Obedience 
is better than sacrifice." The meaning of this verse is that 
it is better to do the will of God at once and at the time one 
can do it than to be contrary to G-od's will and then try to 
sacrifice afterwards. 

You can read the story in Samuel. We wish to impress 
on you something of the sort in a far different sense from 
the way this passage was written, but we wish to tell you of 
what seems to us a part of the divine law. 

The taking care of that which we have is a dut}^ which we 
owe to Grocl, who has furnished us with our goods and our 
breath and the water we drink, as well as the pleasures to our 
bodies and good to do to some one else. It is a duty to live 
aright. 

Our shoes are, in realit}', one of the most important of all 



Personal Habits. 233 

the things which we wear on our bodies. They are the 
groundwork of all the dressing we may have, and if we do 
not have good shoes or good boots, we are not dressed well 
or comfortable. 

Besides this, we are to find that if the shoes are bad or if 
they are tight or if they are run over on one side or the toes 
are out, we shall have some feeling as if we were in some 
sort of pain. Mentally we shall be in pain. We do not 
think it is possible for one to be happy and have on worn-out 
shoes or worn-out slippers and be liable to have some one 
come in and see them, or to have to go to church or to 
school or to do some shopping on the street and have on 
the shoes which we know do not look well to others. 

There is some sort of magnetism about having good shoes 
which is catching. We can not explain it, but when we see 
a person on the street who is well dressed on the feet we say, 
' ' Such a one is well dressed on the feet, " and we instinctively 
look at the rest of the body to see how that corresponds with 
the well dressed feet. 

Let us try to have well dressed feet. To do this we have to 
take care of the shoes we already have, for if we do not care 
for them, we shall have to keep buying new ones. 

The shoes should never be placed near a fire to warm the 
feet. When the shoe goes near the fire it will be ruined, as 
the leather is from the hide of some animal, and the moment 
the fire is come close to the shoe to burn or even to heat 
that leather, it becomes rotten and the next time it is wet 
there will be a shrinking, and the leather (which is the tanned 
hide of the creature from which it was taken) cracks, and 
there is an end of all usefulness and all wearing qualities to 
the leather. The shoe, although it does not look so, is at 
once destroyed. The next time it is worn there will be some 
trouble in the fibres of the leather because it will be so dry, 
or because the grain of the leather is broken, and then there 
will be an open place in the shoes and the shoemaker can 
not mend it, because the leather is rotten. The shoe is 
spoiled. We say heat is the great destructive agent in wear- 
ing out all the shoes which are made. We tell you, keep 



234 Personal Habits. 



those shoes away from the fire, as you would keep }^our eyes 
away from the fire. The fire as good as burns that shoe rot- 
ten in two minutes, and although you may not be able to see 
the burn, it will be in the shoe and no matter how good the 
shoe may have been, after it is introduced to fire, it is ruined. 

I have seen girls place their feet over a register in the 
school room and have actually known of some girls who took 
a pair of shoes which cost $3. 50 and had them rained in a 
day. I have known of two girls who had the same kind of 
shoes which were made to order, and one of them wore the 
shoes a year and the other one would not wear them six 
months. The difference was in the introduction of the heat 
to the leather. If } T ou desire to burn anything burn your 
fingers. Place } T our naked feet in the fire and burn them, 
but do not burn the shoes which have cost time and labor 
and skill to make and which to destroy is to steal from some 
one. Yes, steal. You have no right to waste and no right 
to destroy some one's labor. 

You say } t ou wish to be warm; very well, be warm. Do 
not heat and ruin the shoes in trying to get the feet warm. 
Take off the shoes and place the feet near the fire if you 
choose, but let the shoes remain in the cold, and do not 
ruin a day's work in one minute because you have not brains 
enough to think of where that shoe came from. 

Think of placing a two-dollar bill in the fire and burning 
that bill up. Think of working all day over a shoe and 
then to have some one come along and place all your day's 
work in the fire. Think of having your body taken up and 
having your skin tanned and then after it is all fixed for 
some animal (a monkey, if you choose) to wear, and that ani- 
mal places the part of your hide which is in that shoe in 
some fire and burns it up. How foolish ! Yes, it is f oily. 
But the burning of the shoe is a far greater folly. The 
waste that is annually on a family for the not taking care of 
the shoes is enough to pay for their flour. The taking care 
of the shoes is of as much importance as the taking care of 
the bonnet. More, for the bonnet does not keep the feet 
from water, and the feet are of more importance than the 



Personal Habits. 235 



head in the matter of the care of the bocly. You can get a 
cold in your head and soon have it over, but if you get a 
cold in the feet there is far more danger to the general sys- 
tem than if yoa had a cold in the head. 

There is yet another thing to be thought of when you take 
notice of the shoes. You need to walk to exercise all of the 
bod} r , for when you walk you have nearly every motion of 
the body in full play. You must have shoes to walk with. 
If these shoes are not in good condition there will be some 
lime when you can not do as much walking as you should, 
and then 3011 will blame the shoes for not allowing the rest 
of the body to be well exereised. The shoes are important. 
Take care of those shoes. No good, honest, industrious 
girl will burn up her shoes. 

If there is anything which will tell of your personal habits 
to the outsiders who do not know you, it is the habit of not 
having the buttons of your shoes and the buttons of your 
dress or the buttons of your jacket or wrapper sewed on 
and fixed tid} T to go out on the street at any time. 

If you are in the habit of leaving off these important ad- 
juncts to your dress, allow us to tell you that 3-011 are now on 
the way to a very great unhappiness. No one can keep 
house, or can keep herself clean or sweet, who will not keep 
the buttons sewed on her clothes and on her shoes. 

She is called names behind the back, and it is of no conse- 
quence how well she can sing or how well she can play, the 
fact that she will not have the buttons sewed on is enough to 
condemn her as a bad woman. I never knew a happy or a 
long-lived woman who would not sew the buttons on her 
clothes or on her shoes. When I see a button off from a 
shoe, I think of what I heard a man say concerning the char- 
acter of one who always had the buttons off or dangling aboitt 
her. ' ' She is an unhappy wretch. " You ma}' not be able to 
talk but one language and you may not be able to play on 
the piano; but if yon can find time to sew the buttons 
on your clothes } t ou will have some of the jo}*s of this life. 
But if you are too much engrossed in this life to sew on the 
buttons which should be used every day. if in their places, 



236 Personal Habits. 



and if you will not sew them on, we think the day of grace 
is past and there is no use to sa} T anything more to you. 
Good bye. Maine. 



Colds. 

While we have given you our ideas of the skin we have 
not told you of the great importance which arises from 
knowing how to keep this skin in good and working order. 

When once this skin gets out of order there is a great fre- 
quency of what the common people call "colds." 

What is a cold ? 

A cold is a condition of the bo*dy where the pores of the 
skin are contracted and the insensible perspiration can not 
find its way out through the proper channels, and so the en- 
tire system is out of order. 

There is too much to do for the lungs and so there is a 
cough. There is too much to do for the kidne\-s and so the 
urine is more frequent than it should be. 

There is a running of the nose because the mucous mem- 
brane which lines the nose has too much to do in carrying 
off the material which should have gone through the entire 
skin and out through the entire body. 

There is too much of an effort to get rid of this material, 
and this effort of the vital force to expel this insensible per- 
spiration is called a fever. 

If, now, this effort of the vital force is not aided b} T your 
assistance, there is going to be, as soon as the vital force gets 
ready to make a more strenuous effort, a chill. You will 
know it when this chill comes to you. 

As we have already spoken of our method of treating 
these chills, we will give you the method of speedil}' curing 
tfiis condition of the body which is known as "a cold." 

The cold is a contraction of the pores of the skin, which 
can not throw off its accustomed perspiration. 

The thing to do is to open the pores of the skin and keep 
them open until the circulation is fully restored. 

While you may take some warming teas, as of ginger, 
or Canada snake root (infusions), there are still two of the 



Personal Habits. 237 

more important conditions which are too commonly over- 
looked. 

1. The condition of the temperature of the room in 
which the body is to sta} T . 

If } t ou open the pores of the skin and then go into the 
air so as to again rapidly shut up the pores of the skin, the 
condition of the skin will be worse than it was at the begin- 
ning of the cold. 

Therefore the best thing to do is to make it a point when 
you have a cold to be certain you can stay in one tempera- 
ture until that " cold " is over and gone. 

The failure to know this fact is what prolongs the condi- 
tion of the skin and so precipitates the body into that con- 
dition of effort which is called a "fever." 

When you have a cold and desire to be wholly rid of 
the effect of this cold there must be some provision to keep 
the skin in a proper temperature until it is able to retain its 
equilibrium. 

The skin should be educated to hold its circulation under 
as many different circumstances as possible. 

2. The second best thing to be rid of this cold is to have 
the daily cold bath. 

The next best thing is to have all of the body clad in an 
equable set of garments. Cotton stockings on the feet and 
a thick undershirt on the lungs do not leave the body 
equall}- protected from all the inclemencies of the weather 
alike. So the sudden changes of high to low shoes is one of 
the most frequent causes of colds in the early fall and winter. 

And the change of one kind of underwear to another 
is often a cause of taking cold. The sudden taking into the 
body of some kinds of hot drink and going out into the cold 
air is another method of " catching cold. " 

But the skin which is not educated is the one which is to 
be found with a cold. 

The skin should be washed every day. It should be rub- 
bed every daj^ as early as one gets up in the morning. 
Then with the daily rubbing and the change of cldfches as we 
have spoken of, there will come such an education of the 



138 Personal Habits. 



skin as will withstand nearly all of the ordinary conditions 
known as the changes of the weather. 

If the skin is an uneducated skin there is every likelihood 
that the least sudden change will give one a ' ' cold. " We re- 
peat what has already been said. Every young lad}* should 
take the daily bath in the morning every da}* when the 
menses are not on and possibly a day before and one or two 
days later, if there is any doubt about the real cessation 
of this flow. 

This education of the skin, will, in nearly all ordinary 
cases of life, prevent the " catching ' : of all kinds of colds. 

"We should not be awake if we did not mention the fact 
that the habit of wearing the low shoes and the habit of having 
the ankles unprotected are two favorable habits for catching- 
cold and having this " run into quick consumption." 

The reason for this condition is as follows : 

The blood starts from the heart and goes to the extrem- 
ities of the body, and when it gets to the extremity of the 
body this blood passes through what are known as capilla- 
ries and then gets into the veins and so back to the heart. 

Now, if there is any clogging of these capillaries of the 
skin, as in the feet or in the head, there is going to be some 
stoppage of the blood as it flows through these capillaries, 
and there is going to be some dead blood corpuscles. When 
these corpuscles of blood die, there is going to be some con- 
gestion, and soon there will be an effort of the vital force to 
overcome this obstruction, and this effort will be called a fever. 

If this effort is continued and the death of these corpus- 
cles continue there will soon be more dead blood corpuscles 
than the vital force can carry away, and some of these dead 
blood corpuscles will be deposited in the lungs, and sooner 
or later there will be a sure case of consumption. This is 
called : - quick consmnption. ; ' 

And we have no hesitation in saying that the senseless 
habit of wearing low shoes, and the wearing of the slimsy 
shoes that are so commonly sold, are two of the great 
reasons why there is so much of this kind of consumption 
in the eastern states. 



Personal Habits. 239 



To have the feet clad in the best manner is of the first im- 
portance, and there can not be too much pains taken in stamp- 
ing this fact on } T our mind before you are booked for the 
consumptives' route. 

The next fool habit is the one of having the underwear of 
insufficient texture. Underwear should be of the best. It 
should be changed when the body is laid down for the night, 
and under no consideration should the same garments be 
"worn in the day time which are worn in the night. All of 
the underwear should be made tight during the winter and it 
is far better to have a little trouble to unbutton two or four 
buttons than it is to cure a cold after the cold is once started. 

The habit of female dresses has been an endless theme. 
There can be no two persons who will think exactly alike on 
these matters, and } T ou cannot afford to be odd enough to 
brave the sneers of y our own sex and the shafts of small 
wit that would be sent at you if you should attempt to dress 
sensibly. But in regard to } T our underwear, that is some- 
thing that is under your own immediate control and }^ou 
can fix it as you please. We say, therefore, do you have 
your underwear so that in the coldest da} r s there can be no 
possibilit}^ of catching cold because the draft comes up on 
your intestines when the underwear is open. Have all of 
the drawers made tight in the winter and fall and haA^e them 
long enough to tuck into the stockings and to have some to 
spare. 

See to it that you know how to wash your own flannels, 
and do it when you are not perfectly sure that they will be 
washed soft and nice. If it is possible, have your shoes 
made to order and have them cut high and cut wide in the 
soles. Have good, thick soles on them and 'have a pair of 
insoles in them which will protect the feet as much as an- 
other pair of stockings will during the inclemency of the 
the weather. If these things are seen to properly it does 
not matter so much what you will wear on the outside 1 . 

It may be calico or silk, and if your body is warmly clad 
there will not be much danger of catching cold by these 
most common methods. 



240 Personal Habits. 



But if you have a cold. 

The first remedy is slippery-elm-bark infusion. This is 
one of the best things in the world, and one which will, in 
the large majority of cases, cure your cold by opening the 
pores of the skin and carrying off the impurities of the 
body which have been lodged in the intestines and in the 
cells of the kidneys. 

See to this, also, that you are not obliged to stay in a 
draft during the time }'ou work. See to it that } r our 
feet are not exposed to some draft of cold air from the bot- 
tom of the door and so keep the pores of the feet contracted. 
All these little things are of importance while you are hav- 
ing a cold, because this care of your body will prevent more 
death of the blood corpuscles, and thus assist your body in 
soon recovering its wonted state of health. 

If you are a servant girl and cannot take the proper care 
of } T our body, that is, if you have to do washing and all 
that sort of work during the time the menses are on, it is 
best for you to promptly leave the place and stay at some 
friend's until you are in a condition to go again into service. 
You have only one body, and when you lose that body it is 
unlikely that you can get another of the persons who are 
perfectly ready to use up the bod}*- for their own personal 
gratification. 

Take good care of your body while you are young and it 
is likely that the body will stay with you to an advanced age. 

If you think you can overcome anj^ of these diseases 
more readily than thousands of others who have tried the 
same thing and are now out in the graveyard, reflect if you 
are not mistaken in your ideas. Ask }^ourself if there are 
not some things which are of more value than money. 

Your complexion. Your continued good health and 
strength. Your will power. And finally the preservation 
of the body in more senses than one. 

If you decide that your body is of more value than some 
one's work, and you have a cold, take the most prompt 
steps to overcome this condition of the body which is 
known as a cold and get yourself into good shape before 



Personal Habits. 241 



you attempt to do any one's washing, or their out-of-door 
work. 

One of the best remedies for a cold as well as a remedy 
for a cough, and painful or scalding urine, is the following: 

Take two great spoonfuls of whole flaxseed which has 
been picked over clean, one-half of a peeled lemon, four 
ounces of white rock candy, a large handful of raisins 
which have been cut twice in two. Place all of these in one 
and a half pints of boiling water. Let them stand half an 
hour and then when they are settled you can drink off the 
top and fill up the ingredients with another pint of boiling 
water. This can be drunk freety if one is in a warm room. 
But if one is engaged in washing, or is in some draft of air 
it should not be taken. 

Put your body in a temperature of 70 to 74 deg. and stay 
there until }'ou are well. 



CHAPTER XXII. 
COMPENSATIONS. 

There are some subjects which are better untouched. We 
would be glad to leave this subject which we now are about 
to commence, unspoken of, but we can not do it and finish 
the book. 

There would be some things which would not be seen and 
some things which come in daily notice which would be al- 
ways obscure. And we would not wish to think that one of 
the pitfalls of life had been left open and we had shunned to 
mention it, while there are some which will fall in, no matter 
how much the wa} T is guarded. We have already- said that 
the 3 r oung lady who permits an}^ man to take any liberties 
with her person, is a fool. She is, but there are those like the 
fly, who think they can do a^-thing and 3-et come out all right 
and be as well off after their experiment as before the} T tried 
it. We know ahead that there is failure in all of these lapses 
from the strict path of virtue, and we have had our sa}^ about 
what we consider the proper way to do in these cases. Our 
idea of preventing all departures from strict virtue, we re- 
peat most emphatically: Never allow any familiarity with 
3*our person, and above all never allow 3 T ourself to do in the 
dark that which 3-011 would not have 3^our mother see 3-ou do 
in the broadest da3*light. 

But while we sa3 T this, and we know this is the best advice 
which we can give, 3-et we know there are cases which are 
not right and which are called anomalous and which an3' one 
will sa3 r are almost foreordained, and that is in cases where 
after the 3'oung M3' has been so imprudent as to allow any 
liberties with her person she is to become in a condition which 
will call for tears and sighs and regrets, but there will nothing 
be of any avail and the young lad3 T will be in a condition from 
which she would gladty go to death. She will have inside 

242 



Compensations. 243 



of her a new being, and that will be, without the marriage 
rite, a condition of shame and disgrace to all of her friends. 

With the marriage rite this will be the normal condition, 
and a desirable condition for the wife who loves the husband: 
yet, when this condition comes from an intercourse which is 
illicit, this child, will be most unwelcome to all, and the 
state of the young lad}' who is in this condition will be 
most deplorable. We say this with all the lenienc}' which 
we can have, there is no condition on earth which will be so 
bad as the condition of the young lady who has permitted 
some trifling familiarity at the first and this goes on until 
she, in a moment of thoughtlessness or a moment of passion, 
allows the fatal familiarity (which is certain to follow the 
least surrender of the deportment), by which she surrenders 
the body to the passion of the man. 

All the moralizing in the world will never be sufficient to 
keep a }-oung lady from making a mis-step, if she is not in 
the right line of thought at the very beginning of her life. 
She should be able to think for herself before she yields in 
the slightest particular. 

More than this, she should be ready to think for her own self, 
and be ready to stem and repress the passions of the man, who 
will tempt and promise her anything to gain the control of 
her body. She must think and act for herself and also 
stem the passions of the lustful man. All this is true, but 
in spite of what has been said there will be some who will 
forget all of these resolutions and sa}dngs while the fit of pas- 
sion is on, and when the result of their passion is come on 
them, there is the greatest remorse and the most abject de- 
spondency. 

The}' see no way out of their mistake, and the man usually 
leaves at this time, and then, in their ignorance and their 
terror to hide the first sin or the first folly, they think or are 
persuaded to kill the growing evidence of their shame. 

They desire to commit an abortion and to bury the little 
life which is dependent upon their will, but which really has as 
much right to live as if born in wedlock a thousand times over. 
Their hearts are filled with murder, as it is the same as mur- 



244 Compensations. 



der in any way it is looked at. To these unfortunate women 
this chapter is sent. 

Compensations. No: we can not tell you an}~ rcyal route 
out of 3'our distress, nor can 3'ou be helped from the birth of 
that child. It will be born somehow; and if not allowed to 
be born in the proper way, there will be some compensation 
you will think of in a degree still harder than having a child. 

First. Your idea should be to see the man to whom you 
have given your all and see if he will not make you the wife 
he has probably promised to do. 

While we say this is the first object, there are some objec- 
tions to this step, which we will briefly name. 

Do you really love the man? 

If you do not, then the life which } r ou will lead after 3-011 
are married will be one continuous hell. You had better 
have the bab3' a dozen times over than to be obliged to live 
with the man who has had the heart to betra3' 3'ou. He will 
never cease to throw up this slip of the judgment and there 
will alwa3's be some doubt on 3'our part, which will be the 
ver3' worst unhappiness, and which 3-0 u will have to bear with- 
out an3' repining. For there is no one to whom you can go 
and tell the griefs which come from the one to whom should 
be confided eveiy care of this life. 

So we say. think of this a little and do not have the man 
if there is airy doubt of 3'our love for him or his love to and 
for 3'ou. 

Again, if there is an3' unfaithfulness on his part, we ad- 
vise 3'ou not to have airy marriage ceremon3 T mumbled over 
3'ou, but to resolve to bear your own shame rather than to 
be tied to some one who will not be faithful to 3'ou after the 
marriage. While the unhappiness is great now, there is no 
comparison to the unhappiness which will be on 3 t ou when 
3'ou see the same unfaithfulness carried out with others. 

As a happ3' wife 3 T ou must have a virtuous husband, and if 
3'ou think 3-011 are to have a man who will not be true to 3^ou, 
do not many him for all the inducements of this life. 

Second. If there is an3 r chance, if 3-our mother is living, 
the one whom you should make your confident is the mother. 



Compensations. 245 



She is your best friend at all times, and will shield you 
longer than any one on the earth. 

The next thing is to see where you can go and how you 
can act so as to cause the least shame to you and your rela- 
tives. All this is to be considered and it must be thought of 
seriously. You have not only yourself to consider, but the 
condition of all of the relatives and their standing and their 
rights. When you fall, you disgrace the name of the f amil}-, 
and by this you pull all of the family down to a lower level 
than they were before, and you yourself are the object of 
detestation. 

This must be acknowledged. 

But can all this be overcome without killing the child 
and hiding the evidence of your shame in the graveyard ? 

Let us see. 

Suppose you have the child killed ? 

The child is dead and in the ground. You have commit- 
ted a second crime against nature to hide the first mis-step 
which you were guilty of. Will this second crime do } t ou 
any good ? 

You have killed the child. It is dead. You are held 
guiltless, and possibly there may be no evidence of any 
of your foil}' on the earth. But there are three who 
know of this, and there will be more whom you do not 
know who will know all of these circumstances, surround 
them as you will. 

You will know for one. And that this thing has hap- 
pened will always be on your face to the longest day of 
your life. I say this murder of the child will be on your 
face to the day 3-011 are dead. Consider whether you desire 
the crime of murder to be written on your face in such 
characters that any one who can read your face can tell of 
this crime as soon as they can see your face. 

The woman who has committed the crime of abortion has 
already this criminal face, and any one who has seen the 
kind of face which is represented by these abortionists Avill 
know this face anywhere it is met. This is a compensation. 
You may think this is unjust. But it is not Nature im- 



246 Compensations. 



prints all of these thoughts on our faces and an act is 
doubty impressed, — impressed on the face and impressed on 
the lineaments of the countenance. This is one of nature's 
compensations, and although ever}' one is not able to read 
this countenance there are those who do, and those who do 
read this countenance are the ones whom 3'ou will desire as 
friends. Kill the child, and as sure as this is done there is 
murder written on your face. As long as you are on the 
earth this murder will remain on your countenance, and no 
soap or washing will take it off so that it can not be seen. 

Nature can not prevent 3'ou from murdering the child, but 
she can and will put a brand on your face that will prevent 
others from trusting you in 3'our relations in life. 

Third. The considerations of the bod}' which 3-011 ma} r 
possess are of some importance. 

When you have produced an abortion there will come to 
3'ou such marks on the inside of the uterus as are onl3' known 
to the anatomist who is familiar with the bodies which he ex- 
amines. These marks are such as we have no time to speak 
of, but which consist in an injury done to the lining of the 
womb. The mucous coats of the uterus are so injured that 
there is a scar there where it was all a smooth surface 
before. As there was a loss there in the uterus there is a 
loss of muscular contractility in the whole bod}'. 

You will no longer be the same person, and for all the pur- 
poses of this life, for all the enjoyment of this life, 3^ou are 
practically dead. You can never be as strong as 3'ou were 
before, and the greatest of all probabilities exist that 3'ou 
will have much shortened life. It is true that this does oc- 
cur as well to those who are married and have the abortions 
performed on them as those who have abortions who are un- 
married. The ceremony of marriage does not make an}- 
difference as to the crime against nature. Nature's laws do 
not depend on any will of man or on what man says or 
thinks. Nature's laws are aboA r e all of the work of man. 

So the effects of all abortions are likely to be and are the 
same. In some cases, under favorable conditions, the laws 
ma}- seem to be in abe3'ance, and the abortion ma3' be success- 



Compensations. 247 



fully carried out and the person pass on through life to the 
apparent and outside eye as good as if the abortion was 
never committed. But nature never makes a mistake. She 
keeps a correct account, and when the time comes she exacts 
one hundred cents on the dollar, and if there has any wrong 
been done to the bocly, nature exacts the full payment for 
all of the injuries done to the body. 

I call to mind a case which occurred nearly thirty years 
ago. There was a young couple, and the young man had 
been too intimate before marriage, and they thought when 
the baby came it would tell of their time of intimacy pre- 
vious to marriage. 

So it would, of course, and there would be some of the 
old hens who would always rake up such things and detail 
them in all of the societies where they went, and they would 
make the days very unpleasant for all who were concerned. 

So the young husband went to a doctor, and the doctor was 
too big a coward to do this killing himself, and he loaned 
the instrument to the young husband, and the husband went 
to work on the wife and soon had the baby killed. 

It was all passed over as one of the things which will oc- 
cur. But nature is not to be fooled. So one day this 
young wife woke up with a cough, and then it grew worse un- 
til the}' had all the doctors around there, and among others 
was the writer of this article; and the wife who had been 
afraid of the hens was soon in the fast stages of consump- 
tion, and was laid away to await a judgment where there will 
be no dictum of the black-dressed crows of the so-called 
society. That is, she will await a judgment if she does not 
remain in the congregation of the dead. 

I saw another young girl who was in this unfortunate con- 
dition of "loving well but not too wisely, " and she went to 
a distant state to have the baby killed. She went to one 
doctor who was afraid of her surroundings (she was rich), 
and ho would not do it. So she had recourse to an old lady 
who did not hesitate to do these little murders, and this fine 
old lady gave her a hook. With this hook the young lady 
went, to work and hooked out the baby in the most literal 



248 Compensation; 



manner. There was a sudden flooding, and this writer 
was called but could not attend, on account of other patients, 
and soon the other doctors with ergot helped her — to die ; 
and they sent the body home in a nice coffin. 

There was a Catholic woman, the wife of a barber, who 
had the idea that having a couple of children was enough; 
she did not want any more, so she proceeded to a lady phy- 
sician and the lady doctor went to work and made an opera- 
tion of the uterus to produce abortion, and having done this 
the woman went home satisfied. 

But when the child came away there was a flooding and 
the symptoms became so alarming that there was a hastening 
for the nearest doctor and the nearest priest. The priest 
was there first and absolution after confession was in order. 
The priest stayed long enough to know the lady was dead, 
and then went to the ma} T or of the cit}- and told him to ar- 
rest the lady doctor. But the husband of the lady plrysi- 
cian was a mutual friend of the mayor, and in the early train 
the lady doctor went to a distant city. 

These are onty samples of thousands of cases which have 
come under the observation of the writer from the acts of 
abortion. These are compensations for breaking one of the 
great laws of nature. We sslj, do not kill that babj\ Wait 
a minute. 

One of the most eminent senators ever in the United 
States and one who never had a spot on his character, 
was a child born out of wedlock. Ma}- it not be possible 
that the child which you are so anxious to kill will or would 
prove to be a blessing? Don't kill it. 

Let us tell you a much better way of doing. There are 
thousands of places where that child can be carried, and 
where you can live b} T aid of some friend until the child is 
born, and then the child can be kept in dozens of ways so 
that the disgrace will not fall on } t ou or j-our f amity. Look 
at this well, for upon this fact hangs a chance for your repu- 
tation and j'our child's life. It certainty is not needed to 
kill that child when } T ou think that child is a part of 3 T ourself 
and that there can be no such thing as a quiet murder with- 




Arteries of Pelvis and internal Genital Organs in the Fe- 
male subject. 



a Os sacrum. 

b Crest of ilium. 

c Spina ilii anterior superior. 

d Mscl. psoas magnus. 

e M. iliacus interims. 

f Intestinum rectum. 

g Uterus. 

h Ligamentum uteri latum. 

i Ovarium with ligamentum ovarii 

k Tuba Fallopii. 



1 Ligamentum uteri latum. 



1 Aorta descendens abdominal is 

2 Art. sacra media. 

3 Art. spermatica interna. 

4 Art. iliaca interna. 

5 Art. iliaca externa. 
(3 Art. iliaca interna. 

7 Art. uterina. 

8 Art. liaMuovrhoidalis media. 

9 Art. circuniflexa ilii. 



Compensations. 249 



out airy compensation. If you murder, the compensation 
comes sure. On the other hand, if you choose to allow this 
child to live there is something to look at on the other side. 

God must live; He must reign, and if, in his wisdom, He 
has allowed a child to grow in you, do you not think there 
will be some blessing attached to the obedience of His laws? 
We tell you there is an obedience in these things which 
brings you a blessing and a blessing which is a compensa- 
tion for many of what are called disgraces. 

If there has been any surrender of your person so that 
you are with a child, we say take some way to preserve the 
life of that child just as if it were from God, and trust to 
Him to take care of you; but do not think, under any cir- 
cumstances, of killing the baby to hide the supposed shame 
which the birth of the baby will bring upon you and your 
family. We acknowledge it can be done. But every one 
knows it or will know of it. Think over the best way to 
have the baby with the least publicity, and have it. God 
will certainly compensate you for your trouble ; and go and 
sin no more. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 
DURING COURTSHIP. 

We who look forward to a life beyond the grave believe 
that our present existence (rightly improved) gives us suffi- 
cient spiritual strength to fully meet the wants of that future 
life. Our mistakes may injure us the most deepl}*, jet the}' 
are so far reaching in their consequences that it seems as if 
no act, however trivial, could affect but one person alone. 

When we see lives go wrong, we feel that earl}' training 
and early associations were not adapted to their individual 
needs. 

Our object in the present chapter is not to clear up all ex- 
isting evils, but rather to touch upon one period of our exist- 
ence. The question often arises, How much do the mis- 
understandings of wedded life depend on the association of 
the parties before marriage? 

Chinese custom does not allow the betrothed to see each 
other until their wedding day. Then if the bride elect does 
not strike the groom pleasantly, he can slam the carriage 
door in her face and there is no marriage. 

This, however, seldom occurs and the marriages are as 
happy as they generally are where the woman is an absolute 
slave and the man has authority to beat her if aught in the 
cooking goes wrong or she in any way displeases her lord. 

Among the Hindoos a girl is married when only five or 
six years of age, and she goes at once to live with her hus- 
band's parents, who give her whatever training they wish un- 
til she is old enough to live with her husband as his wife. 

These two extremes do not strike us pleasantly, and we 
rather incline to the Europeans who allow betrothed lovers 
to meet only in the presence of chaperones; but even this 
custom (liberal as it may seem in comparison with the Asi- 
atics) conflicts with our ideas of independence and self-re- 
spect. 

250 



During Courtship. 251 

Each of the three customs has its advantages and would 
be beneficial with some natures wherever found. Our coun- 
try has in some respects the best t}-pe of civilization, and it 
behooves us to reflect on these questions and instruct those 
who look to us for counsel that they may not abuse the priv- 
ileges of a life which has the freedom of Eden. 

It often happens that a young girl who is in doubt will go 
for counsel to one scarcely older than herself, and thus the 
young become counselors of the } T oung. These remarks 
are, therefore, not inappropriate as a preliminary to the ques- 
tion, How far does the conduct of a young lacly during 
courtship affect her life after marriage? 

There is one special admonition I would give to all young 
girls, be natural. It is often remarked that young ladies 
with brothers are much more popular than those without, 
because they are not so overawed by the presence of a 
gentleman as to lose their conversational powers and natu- 
ral voice. 

Young ladies who are guilty of affectation are generally 
disgusting, and even if they act their part well enough to de- 
ceive the very elect, their success proves a sorrow when un- 
masked. 

Talk sincerely with your lover and other friends, for thus 
you are less likely to be deceived. The atmosphere of heart- 
felt sincerity is hard to resist and seldom proves attractive 
to the hypocrite. 

Do not imagine that coarse, unfeeling speeches are a proof 
of sincerity. A perfectl}' sincere person is apt to be just 
and kindly at heart; and with such there is a charming court- 
esy which rises above mere conventionalities. 

There is here a word of caution to be given to those who 
are engaged; don't flirt. You may succeed in bringing 3-our 
lover to your side with flattering protestations, but you can 
never be quite sure what volcanoes lie beneath. 

On the other hand, you are not to ignore all other men 
simply because } T our preference is made known. 

Be courteous and lady-like to every one. You are :it \\h- 
erty to converse with your acquaintances, but not to accept 



252 During Courtship. 



special attentions. Any reasonable man would be contented 
with this; an unreasonable man you do not want. 

A dignified women with good conversational powers often 
helps a man to a position from which he might otherwise be 
debarred. Society is glad to retain those who have some- 
thing besides the mere conventional chatter of the day, but 
education alone does not enable one to converse acceptabh'. 

In all this, be careful that there is no undue familiarit}*. 
There should be no intercourse even between betrothed lov- 
ers which would cause a tinge of shame if each were to 
marry another. These things may seem trifling now, but 
they are remembered in after life with possible exaggeration; 
and even if nothing is said they weaken the confidence which 
each might have for the other. 

"Familiarity breeds contempt," for the too-free talking 
person soon grows lax in other respects. The girl who loses 
her modest} T loses her birthright and deprives marriage of its 
sacreclness. 

It does not pay to associate with immoral people or to ape 
them in any respect. I once knew a girl who was attracted 
by the flash}' manners of an unscrupulous woman, and she 
copied some of her ways, little knowing the absurd wrong 
she was doing herself. By this means, the impression 
was given among strangers that she was bad. Being in- 
nocent, this knowledge was a great grief as well as surprise 
to her. 

Perhaps I am old-fashioned in my ideas, but I detest any- 
thing like chasing after the opposite sex. I dislike to see 
young people go to pra} T er-meeting for the sake of having 
some "feller see 'em home.'' The female of doubtful repu- 
tation does this, therefore every right-minded girl should 
avoid what may seem a slight appearance of evil. Come 
home with your brother or parents or neighbors, the ones 
you go with. 

Some 3*ears ago, I had a servant in whom I was much in- 
terested because, although ignorant, she was sincere and 
faithful. I once remonstrated with her on the variet}' of her 
lovers and on her standing at the door an hour or more to talk 



During Courtship. 253 

with the one who had escorted her home from some evening 
entertainment. 

1 ' Well, " answered she, ' ' you don't like to have me ask 'em 
in an' set up with 'em, an' I don't see how else a girl is goin' to 
get engaged. Of course, I want to get married some time. " 

She listened with an incredulous stare to my assertion that 
a girl was more likely to receive eligible offers who would 
not accept these promiscuous attentions from Tom, Dick and 
Harry. 

Undue familiarit}^ cheapens a girl even in her lover's eyes 
and laj's the foundation of future jealousy and possible mur- 
der. There is plenty of time for familiarity after marriage. 
What you most need during your engagement is to learn 
each other's dispositions and general tastes. 

It is said that long engagements are not judicious. They 
are apt to be broken; but a broken engagement is not always 
a calamity. 

I once knew of a man who had very rigid ideas about wo- 
man's sphere, but he fell in love with a young lady who 
bade fair to eradicate some of the old whims. She was a 
.charming woman and a treasure in housekeeping as her 
father could testif } r . 

As Dr. Porter sat with his bride elect a few evenings pre- 
vious to their wedding day, he thought it wise to explain 
some of his peculiar views in regard to a wife's submissive- 
ness. "Why," said he, glancing at the large fire-place, "if 
I should tell m}- wife to put her head under that fore-stick, 
she ought to obey me instantly." 

The young lady rose and said with quiet dignity, ' ' You 
must look elsewhere for a wife, Dr. Porter, for you can't 
find one here." 

Nothing could change her determination, though it ruined 
the doctor's life ; but who could blame her? Had she mar- 
ried him, her servitude would have been life-long. 

Take the case of a certain young man wh'ose heart was in 
the ministry. He married a wife whom ho thought a gift 
from the Lord. She proved worse than Delilah, for her home 
life was a constant sneer at religious subjects. 



25^t During Courtship. 



"Overcome such prejudices," some one says. Let me 
tell you that the lion can conquer an ordinary enemy but he 
is powerless against the gnat in his nostrils. 

This was a long engagement broken at intervals. The 
man's love had proved constant, but the woman had proba- 
bly failed in her attempts elsewhere and, regarding him as 
her last chance, accepted the duties of a wife with but one 
ambition, to outshine her neighbors. 

But long engagements are not always unhappy. One of 
the pleasantest homes I ever knew was that of a couple who 
were engaged several years. The lady occupied her time, 
from the first, in making articles for use in her future home. 

She was an exceptionally fine artist and painted many 
beautiful pictures for the decoration of her house. She also 
learned to cook and became skilled in ever}' other depart- 
ment of housekeeping, so that now her house shines whether 
she has a girl or not. 

There is one more thought which it would be well for 
maidens to bear in mind. Do not seek to appropriate your 
affianced wholly to yourself. Introduce him to your grand- 
mothers, and any one else who may be at your house. 
There is no surer index of a man's character than 
the way he speaks to elderly people and children. 
A man may be ever so punctilious in regard to little 
matters of etiquette, but there is something in the eyes 
which betrays the cruel man when he looks at the very 
aged or extremely young. This expression is hidden when 
he looks at the woman he expects to marry. Love's passion 
naturally obscures it for a time, but the disguise is thrown off 
after marriage ; then girls wake to the consciousness of their 
situation and grieve that the}' had not learned the truth be- 
fore it was everlastingly too late. 

It is better to learn all these things before engaging your- 
self to any man, but it is wrong to marry in ignorance of 
each other. 

Also if you find out after marriage that you have got a 
boor instead of a gentleman, try by your own courtesy to 
win him to a higher plane of existence, but never let him 



During Courtship. 255 

know the tenderest spots in }>our own heart. A coarse nat- 
ure will seek to probe every wound, and your only safety is 
in silence. 

These mistakes made before marriage are sure to follow 
us, a life-long curse. There was a custom among the an- 
cients, when a man had killed another, to bind the corpse 
securely upon the back of the murderer, and thus he was 
Obliged to carry his victim around day after day until death 
released him. Very horrible, and yet no worse than many 
tragedies in daily life. 

Some seek relief in divorce, but the weight remains the 
same. Laugh it aside who will, there is in each heart a re- 
gret for the past, the wasted years. 

The woman is apt to look back with sorrow as she remem- 
bers the months or years previous to her marriage, and she 
will say, ' ' Then was the time I could have made him re- 
spect me, but I gave him reason to think all women were 
vain and thoughtless." She acknowledges with a blush of 
shame that she dared not avow her more serious thoughts 
for fear he would think her dull and prosy and leave her for 
more brilliant acquaintances. 

The man's retrospect is no happier. " If I could have 
married a woman whose highest desire was for something be- 
sides a good time and a great display, I might be having a 
home now and a name in the world instead of being the 
wreck that I am. " 

"God pity them both and pity us all 
Who vainly the dreams of youth recall. ' ' 

X. X. 



CHAPTER XXIY. 

SOME CONDITIONS AND HOW TO TREAT 

THEM. 

For any sort of weakness in your body, first think what 
has caused that weakness and proceed to remedy or to avoid 
that cause. In short, remove the cause. If it is accompan- 
ied by a bad breath, have the bowels clean and take some 
bitter tonic. Read the chapter on constipation. Among 
the best of tonics, chamomile blossoms stand first in order. 
Place forty blossoms (or, if it is G-errnan chamomile, which 
is 3-ellow and smaller blossoms and much finer, a tablespoon- 
f ul) in a pint of boiling water ; let this stand for an hour 
and take a swallow or a wineglassful three times a day. 

This is one of the best tonics which is in the world. It 
cleans the stomach and is also a good but mild vermifuge. 
It destroj^s germs.. 

This infusion may be taken for all sorts of weakness and 
for a chronic cough and for any form of dyspepsia. 

It is good for f aintness at the stomach, and for what the 
doctors commonly call "female complaints." Another rem- 
ed}* for f aintness at the stomach and a voracious appetite, is 
an infusion of the sassafrass bark made with one-half tea- 
spoonful to a cup of boiling water, and take half a cupful 
before every meal. Sassafrass is said to " thin the blood," 
but we do not know that this is true . (Unless it thins the 
blood in the doctor who could get a fee from you. ) It is a 
good vermifuge and is of sendee in relieving the stomach 
and intestines of the slime and the germs which accumulate 
there after one has a diet of meat, potatoes and coffee. 

For pimples on the face, avoid all kinds of grease and have 
the bowels kept loose. (See constipation. ) 

Make an infusion of the common burdock (arctium lappa) 
and take a cupful three times a day. 

Do not eat anything in the shape of flour bread, but eat 

256 



Some Conditions and How to Treat Them. 257 

graham or corn meal bread or the mushes. Take the daily 
bath, and if there is any such thing as parasites in the skin, 
use some of the washes advised in another chapter. 

For any spitting of blood, drink freely of bugle weed and 
nothing else. This is the lycopus Virginica of the botan- 
ists and is a specific for any bleeding. It is also good for 
fistulas and falling of the bowels and for some forms of pal- 
pitation of the heart. 

In cases of shortness of breath, use the injections of 
water daily and eat vegetable food. 

In cases of asthma, use the tincture of wafer ash {ptelea 
trifoliata), ten to fifteen drops three times a day dropped on 
a lump of sugar, and avoid any food which is of a starchy 
nature, as potatoes and corn starch and rice, sago and pastry. 

Many of the present brood of diseases are caused by the 
common use of fine flour. Biscuits and baking powder are 
disease breeders. 

Pure graham flour made from whole wheat is far the best, 
and it will only take a little effort to get it made into bread. 
Or, if one is boarding herself, have this graham made 
into mush and eat it with honey or sugar or syrup or milk. 

Do not drink any milk if constipated. Make it half 
water or do not touch it. If faint, add a little pinch of 
salt. This drives out the worms. 

Much of the milk sold in the cities is not fit for use. The 
milk usually found in boarding houses and in restaurants is 
slop-fed milk and contains the germs of consumption. 

Never retain the urine or prevent a natural movement of 
the bowels as soon as nature calls. The retention of the 
urine has often destroyed the power of the bladder and left 
the unwise lady in a state of weakness from which there was 
a slow and imperfect recovery. 

Attend to all calls of nature at once and see that the body 
is kept perfectly in order. 

A good remedy for scalding of the urine will be found to 

be an infusion of slippery elm bark. Have the bark whole 

and place a handful of the whole bark in a pint of warm 

water; let it steep an hour. This can be drunk freely, and 

R 



258 Some Conditions and How to Treat Them. 

will prove one of the best things to relieve a cough, as well 
as to remove the conditions which bring on the scalding of 
urine. There is no danger of taking too much, as it can be 
taken with advantage day after day until all the obstructions 
are removed. 

For anything which is the matter with the back, think 
out what is likel}* to be the cause; then remove the 
cause. The greatest cause of a weak back often lies in 
having a mass of material in the bowels which should 
have passed off long ago. Take the injections to the bowels 
and see that the food is coarse enough to pass through the 
bowels readily. 

Sometimes this backache is caused from some worms 
which are burrowing in the intestines. For these worms, 
take an infusion of sage three times a day, a cup full. 
Tans} T is a good vermifuge; have a cup half full of the infu- 
sion (the infusion of these herbs is usually made by having 
one heaping teaspoonful in a cupful of boiling water). Let 
this steep an hour, strain and keep warm. Take a table- 
spoonful every time before meals, and if you are faint and 
weak go to the cup and take a teaspoonful. It may have 
sugar in it. 

The doctors have called tansy a poison; it appears to be a 
poison to worms and to the doctors. As long as our moth- 
ers could use tansy the doctors did not have so much to do 
as the}' did the moment the}' could warn the people away 
from the use of these simple remedies. 

An excellent remedy for worms is the balmony {clielone 
glabra of the botanists). Make an infusion as of the others 
and drink before eating, one-fourth to one-half a cupful. 
This is also an excellent remed}^ for all forms of bad breath. 
Balmony is a tonic and a vermifuge as well as a cleaner to 
the stomach and to the intestines. 

Gentian and capsicum (red pepper) are two of the best 
remedies for pin worms. They should be made into an infu- 
sion or into a pill. This pill can be taken after meals, one 
or three grain pills. 

An injection to the bowels eveiy night will remove all the 



Some Conditions and How to Treat Them. 259 

worms in the intestines and will soon have them out of the 
body if the diet is correct. 

There are hundreds of young ladies who are sick and do not 
think what is the matter with them. They are sick because 
they have a body which is not clean on the outside and not 
clean on the inside. And to cleanse this body there must 
be a change in their habits and a change in all their actions. 

They should think out what is the matter — what causes 
their aches — and resolutely make up their minds to live ac- 
cording to the laws of good health. The body should be 
clean on the outside and washed out on the inside as much 
as possible. The visit to the ordinary doctor will leave 
so much mystery about them the moment the doctor com- 
mences to talk that the young lady will not know what to 
believe. In some cases she will think of something which 
she should have done, and in these cases the doctor finds a 
willing victim to believe the lies he will tell about the 
trouble with her womb. 

She will commence to think there may be something in 
what he says and then submit herself to an examination of 
the doctor. We think this is one of the worst things in the 
world for a young lady to do, — to submit her body to the 
gaze of the doctor while she has no disease of the generative 
organs. We are sure this is a foolish and common error. 
We do not think there is one time in five hundred that there 
is an3 T thing the matter with the uterus while the rest of the 
body is in order. We think the uterus is out of order when 
there has been some diseased condition which has been 
placed in contact with the uterus, but that the uterus should 
so commonly take on any form of disease, as an organ, 
while the rest of the bod}' is cleanly and well preserved, we 
do not believe. It is the doctor's teaching and that teaching- 
is erroneous. 

The same ma}' be said of the troubles of the back. One 
of the lady writers whose name is in all fiction readers* 
mouths, has said, "Wear a plaster on the back/' and then 
she states the kind of plaster she prefers, and goes on to say 
that " this plaster is like the pressure of a great, warm hand. '" 



260 Some Conditions and How to Treat Them. 

We have a pity for the young lad}' who is needing a 
"great, warm hand on her back " until she is married. 

The facts are somewhat different from what this lad}' 
writer suggests. The facts are that this plaster contains 
some kind of a narcotic poison, and this narcotic will kill the 
living matter and thus the pain will be relieved, because the 
nerves of the spinal column will have been killed or de- 
stroyed by this plaster. All of these commercial plasters 
contain some narcotic which kills the living matter, and al- 
though the pain of the back may appear to be relieved, yet 
the causes of this unpleasant message (pain) will remain in 
the back, and the body will be worse off than before the 
plaster was applied. There has been some destruction to 
the blood and the nerve corpuscles and the body will suffer 
in proportion to the strength of the poison plaster, and the 
length of time it is worn. 

We say, therefore, for all of these troubles, think out the 
cause and do the best to remove the cause of these aches 
and pains, and do not allow any one to tell you about apply- 
ing a poison plaster to any part of the body to get rid of 
some pain, while the thing which should be done would be 
to remove the cause of the disease. Remove the cause of 
the pain in the back and do not kill the nerves in the back 
so they can not send you any more messages of obstruction. 

A wet bandage over the back is of far more actual value 
in taking out the cause of aches and pains than any plaster 
or any examination which the doctors can make; and then 
have their bill out of you beside. 

If the doctors were honest they would tell what is the 
matter with the body. We say they are not taught to be hon- 
es1 ; their teaching has been to make a bill and to ' ' lead 
silly women captive." So there are thousands of women to- 
day who are suffering from some form of disease which 
could be easily cured, if they would have the patience to 
look after the cause and go to work and remove that cause. 
The placing of these poisons as of belladonna, aconite, 
opium and stry chine on the body to kill the living matter, is 
a far more dangerous practice than is commonly supposed. 



Some Conditions and How to Treat Them. 261 

It is one of the reasons why there are so many weakly 
women. We say to you, keep these poisons away from your 
body and out of the system. Keep away from these poison- 
ers. Keep away from a doctor as } r ou would keep away 
from any one else whose business it is to make money out of 
the necessities and the ignorance of the people. Keep the 
plaster and the so-called remedies of the shops away from 
your body as you would keep away from a snake's fangs. 
They may have done something towards keeping the minds 
of some people from a grievance, but we declare to you that 
all of these things which are sold in the shops are only so 
much detriment to the bod} T , and the use of water, hot or 
cold, is of far more benefit to the body and will leave the 
body in a better condition than any of the so-called plasters 
will do. Every plaster, lotion, liniment and wash which 
comes from the drug store is a poison and will injure your 
body. 

After the body is once poisoned there is an end to health. 
We may go a step further and tell you that every regular 
doctor and every drug store is in league to poison your body. 
Shun these allopaths as you would shun the coffin or the 
pest house. The curse of Almighty G-od is upon them. 
God will never save or raise up an allopathic doctor. This 
is sure. 

Weak legs and weak ankles are to be overcome by a con- 
tinued exercise. Walk in the morning and at noon and 
whenever you have the time to walk. Walking is the best 
of all the exercises and will do you good like a medicine. 

If it is convenient after you have the walk, have a good 
wash all over and change the underclothes. 

For bunions change the foot wear (shoes) every day, or 
three or four times a day, and see that the feet feel pleasant. 
It is a dirty habit to allow the feet to wear the same shoes 
and stockings every da} r . If it is possible do not allow 
yourself to wear anything n the feet which bears on the 
bunion or corn. Have it trimmed off closely twice a week 
and apply a drop of the oil of origanum; This will soften 
the corn or the bunion so that it will come out and vanish. 



262 Some Conditions and Hoav to Treat Them. 

Soaking in weak lye water will be found very useful, if you 
have something which has annoyed you for a long time. 

The secret of getting rid of these corns and 
bunions is in getting a good circulation in the parts and not 
allowing anything to be there which should be passed off 
through the pores of the skin. Therefore when one tries to 
get rid of these bunions or corns the}' should be read}' to 
wash the feet three to five times a day and wear the softest 
of stockings and the widest and easiest of shoes. 

The constant changing of the foot wear while one is try- 
ing to remove the corns is imperative. Stockings should be 
changed every day and the shoes every day if the ones which 
are on do not feel easy and comfortable. You can change 
them in the middle of the day and any other time of da}' 
when the feet do not feel easy. Attend to the feet, as they 
are your best friends. 

Headaches are nearly always caused by some habit of the 
body which prevents a good circulation of the blood, and the 
best and the quickest remedy is to take an injection to the 
bowels large enough to bring away all of the old material 
which is lodged there. This injection can be of warm water 
and may have to be repeated twice or three times before one 
will get the injection far enough in the bowels to bring away 
the offending material. 

After the trial has been made, and the bunches of old ma- 
terial come away, there will be no trouble in taking up four 
or five quarts of warm water and this ma}' give one a pain 
but it need not matter as it will soon pass off and bring away 
masses of old material which will prove by its smell that it 
should not be in the bowels torturing and smelling to the 
rest of the system. 

If there is a periodical headache take a pill made of the 
extract of Culver's root rolled out in pure capsicum. You 
can buy this extract of a druggist and make them yourself. 
Take one after meals and do not eat but two meals a day. 
This will relieve ninety-nine cases of headache (including the 
various forms of sick headache) which are on this earth. 

For diarrhea take large warm water injections and drink 



Some Conditions and How to Treat Them. 263 

freely of the slippery elm tea. If this does not fix it right 
in three hours, and there is any pain, drink an infusion of 
blackberry root, or take the infusion of wild cherry bark, 
rhubarb, prickly ash berries, Culver's root, pleurisy root 
and peppermint, and steep up a cupful and drink a half a 
cupful after every operation of the bowels. A raspberry 
leaf injection is an excellent article; repeat after every oper- 
ation of the bowels. A wet band wrung out of warm 
water is good to wear over the bowels all the time one has 
the diarrhea, and the body should be kept warm. Eat soft 
food. Avoid all foods of gravies and meats while the bow- 
els are out of order. The worst cases of dysentery may be 
treated in the same manner and will be brought safely through 
by this means, and the body will be much better than if 
treated by the poisons of the doctors. 

During the diarrhea or the dysentery one can drink all of 
the soft water that is desired. Lemonade is also to be al- 
lowed, if there is no cramp in the bowels. Crust coffee is 
the best drink, if one can have it made properly. The wet 
band around the bowels is an excellent thing to know in all 
cases of bowel troubles. 

We have now come to the end of this book and if you 
have learned anything new and of use to yourself, we ask 
you to try to help some soul that is lower and poorer than 
you, remembering that G-od is the same yesterday, to-day 
and forever, and that He has said, ' { As ye would that others 
should do unto you, do ye also to them likewise. " 

It is happiness for us to do good so far as we know it, and 
if we do good so far as we know we may be sure the promise 
is good to us that we shall not be forgotten. Blessed be 
G-od who has helped us, who has bidden us to come to Him, 
and who has said by His apostles, "If any lack wisdom let 
him ask of God. " 



I P.ll 517 



